The meaning of

the DISASTER

by CONSTANTINE K. ZURAYK
translated from the Arabic
by R. Bayly W inder

Google UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

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The Meaning of the Disaster

by

Constantine K. Zurayk

Translated from the Arabic

by

R. Bayly Winder

KHAYATs COLLEGE BOOK COOPERATIVE

32 & 34 RUE BLISS — BEIRUT, LEBANON

1956

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T h is work is a complete translation o f Ma'na

al-Nakbah by Constantine K. Zurayk. It is a

part o f the Near Eastern Translation Program

o f the American Council o f Learned Societies.

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 CONTENTS

Translator’s P reface......................................................... vii

Foreword and D edication............................................... I

The Seriousness of the D isa ster.................................... 2

The Duty of the T h in k e r............................................... 9

The Immediate R em ed y ................................................ 13

The Fundamental S o lu tio n ............................................ 34

The Meaning of the D isaster......................................... 47

A Supplement on the Principles Underlying our

Struggle in P alestine............................................... 51

The Conflict between Principle and Force in the

Palestine P roblem .................................................... 55

Why do we Struggle in P alestine?............................... 69

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 TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE

The author of this little book, Dr. Constantine K. Zu-

rayk, way born in Damascus, Syria, in 1909. After attend­
ing the Greek Orthodox School there, he went to neigh­
boring Lebanon's American University of Beirut, by which
he was granted his B A . in 1928. In rapid succession he
was granted the A M . degree by the University of Chicago
(1929) and the Ph.D. in Oriental Languages and Litera­
tures by Princeton University (1930). He had just turned
twenty-one at the time he received the latter. For the next
fifteen years he was professor o f Oriental History at his
alma mater, the American University of Beirut.
The young Republic of Syria, which achieved its inde­
pendence from France during 1944 and 1945, soon called
on Dr. Zurayk, at that time one of a handful of its intel­
ligentsia with firsthand knowledge of America, to play a
leading role in its first diplomatic efforts. During 1945-
1946 he was First Counselor in the Syrian Legation in
Washington and in the following year became Syria's sec­
ond Minister to the United States, as well as a high-rank­
ing member of its delegation to the United Nations.
Despite the attractions and opportunities open to him
in the diplomatic and political fields, Dr. Zurayk soon
chose, to return to his earlier calling— that of educating
the youth of the Middle East at the American University
of Beirut. In 1947 he resigned his post in Washington and
went back to Beirut as vice-president of the University. In
1949 a new and different opportunity arose for him to serve
his country, for he was asked to become Rector of the

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Syrian University in Damascus. This national university
o f 5,000 students was founded in 1924 and is the only in­
stitution of higher education in Syria. During the three
years of his tenure there. Dr. Zurayk strove to strengthen
the bases of the university, and to deepen its influence on
Syrian life. In 1952 he returned to his position in Beirut
and was during the years 1954-1956 acting president of the
American University. In 1951 he was elected to the Execu­
tive Board of UNESCO, and he is also a member of the
UNESCO-sponsored International Commission for a Scien­
tific and Cultural History of Mankind.
This recital of Dr. Zurayk's career, though not de­
tailed, gives a clue to two important sides of his personal­
ity— the one as scholar and educator, the other as patriot.
His major writings reveal the same division. On the schol­
arly side, in addition to his doctoral dissertation, a critical
translation of Miskawayh’s Tahdhib al-Akhlaq wa-Tathir
al-A‘laq, Dr. Zurayk has translated Theodor Noldeke's Die
ghassfinischen Fursten aus dem Hause Gafna’s into Arabic
(as Umara’ Ghassan [with Pendali Jouse; Beirut, 1933]),
edited Isma'il Choi’s al-Yazidiyah, Qadim wa-Hadith (Bei­
rut, 1934), and edited volumes V ll-lX of the Ta’rikh of
ibn-al-Furat (Beirut, 1936-1942; vols. VIII and IX , Part 2
with Nejla Izzedin). On the patriotic side he has published
al-Wa*y al-Qawmi (national consciousness; Beirut, 1936)
and Ma‘na al-Nakbah, the book here translated. Before
turning to the latter, I would like to observe that Dr.
Zurayk"s warmth and integrity form a most important third
aspect of his character—as all who know him will readily
testify.
The translator does not intend to expatiate on the sig­
nificance of The Meaning of the Disaster, for the reader is
in a position to form his own judgment. However, a few
observations may be made. The first Arabic edition ap­

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peared in August, 1948, the second in October o f the same
year. The speed with which the first edition was exhausted
is an indication o f the interest that the book aroused in
the Arab world. It is one of two Arabic books,' appearing
in the wake o f the Arab defeat in Palestine, which, while
upholding with evident fervor the Arab point of view vis-
d-vis Zionism and the establishment o f the state of Israel,
neither indulge in self-pity nor advocate extremism. Instead
The Meaning of the Disaster frankly calls attention to those
aspects of Arab life which in the final analysis were the
most important cause of the “disaster" and outlines both
a short-and long-range program for correcting them. It is
perhaps because few Arabs were willing publicly to blame
themselves that this book was so well received.
A translation o f The Meaning of the Disaster seems
worthwhile on several scores. M ost important is that it
makes available to the general public interested in the
problem o f Palestine an examination by an Arab o f the
causes and implications of what happened there— and there
is all too little material with this point of view available
in English. This little book sums up most o f the feelings
and attitudes o f moderate Arab nationalists toward the
problem. I f these come as shock to some, translation may
be justified on that basis alone. Certainly it is valuable for
the West to have a clearer idea of what the more thought­
fu l people in the M iddle East, an area whose importance
most Americans have now come to realize, do in fact think
about one of the most significant events which has taken
place there since the rise and spread o f Islam. In addition
I hope that this translation will be of use both to students
o f the Arabic language, since the original provides an ex­
cellent text in modern literary Arabic, and to the growing
1. T h e o t h e r : M u m ai*‘ A lam i'a ‘I b r a t F ila s tin ( t h e le a a o n o f P a le s t in e ; B e ir u t,
1949 ). F o r an a b b r e v ia te d tr a n a la tio o a e e T he M id d le E a s t J o u r n a l, v o l. I ll, n o .
4 ( O c to b e r 1949 ) . p p . 372-405.

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number o f people interested in contemporary intellectual
movements in the Middle East.
It should perhaps be emphasized that the book was
written in 1948 immediately following the first cease-fire.
I wish that this translation could have appeared sooner,
but for various reasons both translation and publication
were delayed. In any case I believe that the changes that
have taken place throughout the Arab world since 1948,
some o f which lend the book an aura o f prophecy, will not
constitute more than a minor distraction.
This translation attempts to present the original Ara­
bic in readable English and is neither laden down with
critical apparatus nor narrowly consistent in the translation
o f words. On the former score, a background of current-
events knowledge is assumed, although a few notes have
been added where there seems to be genuine need for clar­
ification.1 In regard to translation, one may get some idea
o f what was done by realizing that the word struggle was
used in various places, but not exclusively, to translate each
o f the following Arabic words: jihad, juhd, sira*, kifah, and
nidal. Conversely, in addition to struggle, at least two other
translations, war effort and crusade, were used for jihad.
The beginning of each page of the original text is indicated
in the margin o f this translation.
The list of those to whom I owe thanks is long, par­
ticularly for such a short book. The first debt is to the
American Council o f Learned Societies under whose aus­
pices this work was translated. Thanks are also due to Dr.
Philip K. Hitti, Mr. Farhat Ziadeh, and Dr. Irfan Kawar
for having rescued me many times. Dr. Zurayk himself
offered many emendations o f great value, and other Arab

1. F o o tn o te * in d ic a t e d by aateriaka w e r e in th e o r ig in a l; th o a e in d ic a te d by num ber*

a re e it h e r th e a n th o r 'a ( a u g g r ste d by h im o n r e a d in g t h e tra n a la tio n ) o r th e
tr a n a la to r ’a a nd a r c fo llo w e d by t h e a p p ro p r ia te in itia la .

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friends helped me in minor ways. To all these I express
m y appreciation. The thankless job of proofreading de­
volved in part on Dr. Oleg Grabar. Special thanks are owed
to Dr. D. W. Robertson, Jr. of the Department of English,
Princeton University, to Dr. Howard Reed of the Ford
Foundation, and to Mr. Richard Nolte of American Uni­
versities Field Staff, all of whom read the manuscript and
offered valuable suggestions. Needless to say none of these
gentlemen can be held responsible for any faults. Finally,
m y wife willingly became a "translating widow" on nu­
merous evenings and to her I owe the largest— that of
providing the atmosphere in which I can work.

Damascus. 20 July 1956

R. Bayly Winder
Department of Oriental Languages
Princeton University

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 F O RE W O RD A N D D EDICATIO N

In this brief study of the tribulations of the Arabs in

Palestine I do not claim either to have “invented gunpow­
der” (or, in the language of this age. “the atomic bomb” ),
or to have discovered a panacea for all our ills. It is simp­
ly, in this most acute crisis which imposes on every indiv­
idual in the nation his share of duty and responsibility,
an attempt to clarify my own thoughts. No doubt the first
condition for properly fulfilling this duty is sound thinking
and planning.
If this attempt benefits my compatriots, and especial­
ly the struggling nationalist groups among them, by re­
moving some of the confusion which rules in our present
atmosphere, I would seek no more. If it does not, then
let its fate be that of the many superfluous publications
which our presses issue today. In any case I hope that it
will not misfire and cause harm where I desire usefulness
and benefit.
With these feelings I dedicate this little study to all
of my liberal, nationalist compatriots as a token of faith,
of sharing, and of loyalty.

Constantine K. Zurayk

August 5, 1948

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 TH E SE R IO U SN ESS OF TH E D ISA ST E R

The defeat of the Arabs in Palestine is no simple

setback or light, passing evil. It is a disaster in every sense
of the word and one of the harshest of the trials and tri­
bulations with which the Arabs have been afflicted through­
out their long history—a history marked by numerous
trials and tribulations.
Seven Arab states declare war on Zionism in Palestine,
stop impotent before it, and then turn on their heels. The
representatives of the Arabs deliver fiery speeches in the
highest international forums, warning what the Arab states
and peoples will do if this or that decision be enacted.
Declarations fall like bombs from the mouths of officials
at the meetings of the A rab League, but when action
becomes necessary, the fire is still and quiet, the steel and
iron are rusted and twisted, quick to bend and disintegrate.
The bombs are hollow and empty. They cause no damage
and kill no one.
Seven states seek the abolition of partition and the
subduing of Zionism, but they leave the battle having lost
a not inconsiderable portion of the soil of Palestine, even
of the part “given” to the Arabs in the partition. They are
forced to accept a truce in which there is neither advantage
nor gain for them.
History has not known a case more just or more obvi­
ously flawless than this: A country is snatched from its peo­
ple to be made into a national home for remnants of man­
kind who settle on it from the various regions of the world
and who erect a state in it despite its inhabitants and the

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millions of their brethren in the neighboring regions. Des­
pite the pure right of the A rabs’ case, the potentialities of
their land, and the interests that other nations have in it
(interests which could have been used as bargaining points),
the Arabs stand alone in the international arena. The great
powers are hostile toward them, and world public opinion
opposes them. They have no strong ally prepared to sup­
port them in such circumstances or to aid them in their
struggle.
Four hundred thousand or more A rabs1 are forced to
flee pellmell from their homes. They have their wealth and
property stripped from them and wander like madmen in
what is left of Palestine and in the other A rab countries.
They do not know what fate has in store for them, nor
what means of livelihood they should seek. They wonder
whether they will be forced to return to their homes,
there to live under the Zionist shadow and to bear what­
ever abuse or scorn, assimilation or extinction the Zionists
may impose on them.
In fact the situation is even worse than this! Disper­
sion has become the lot of the Arabs rather than of the
Jews. Formerly the Arabs refused to recognize the right
of the dispersed Jews, and Jewish committees went before
international organizations trying to obtain a solution of
their problem through the establishment of the Zionist
home in Palestine. Now the Arab states are imploring these
[samel organizations to return the dispersed Arabs to their
[ownl land, now under Zionist rule, and are making the
fulfilment of that demand a condition for changing the
“cease-fire” into a “truce.”

1 U n fo r tu n a te ly m u ch m o r e . B e c a u s e th is b o o k w as w r itte n a s th e e v e n t s and im ­
m e d ia te co n seq u en ces o l th e P a le s t in e w ar w e re u n fo ld in g , t h e ex te n t o f th e
d is a s te r , in te r m s o l t h e n u m b er o f re fu g e e * , c o u ld n o t be p r op erly e s tim a te d . Aa
of IS D e c e m b e r 1955 th e c u m b e r o f r e fu g e e s w aa 91 2 ,1 2 5 a c c o r d in g t o UNRW A
s t a t is t ic s is s u e d 16 A p ril 1956 ( m im e o g r a p h e d ). — RBW

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 In short, the Zionist home in Palestine is today closer
to realization than ever before. On the other side, the very
being of the Arabs has never before known such fragmen­
tation and collapse as in this battle.
In addition to the material collapse is the collapse of
values which is shown (in various ways. It is shown] by
the doubt of the Arabs in their governments and by their
accusations of their leaders and rulers, even by the doubt
of many of them in themselves and in their potentiality as
a nation. (It is also shown] by the despair in their breasts,
by their refusal to meet the danger, and by their shrinking
before the magnitude of the blow. Indeed, this moral and
spiritual relapse is more important than the material loss,
no matter how great the latter might be; for if the resolu­
tion of a people crumbles and its confidence in itself is
lost, it loses the best that it possesses and is impotent to
rise after a fall or to shake from itself the dust of humilia­
tion and defeat.
These are some aspects of the disaster which has over­
taken the Arabs in this battle of the Palestine war. These
and others, which are on the tips of all tongues, which
throb in all hearts, and which every one of us sees and
hears [cited] in these critical days, are sufficient to indicate
the seriousness of the trial and the intensity of the tragedy.
***
However, in all justice we must hasten to say that the
causes of this calamity are not all attributable to the Arabs
themselves. The enemy confronting them is determined,
has plentiful resources, and great influence. Years, even
generations, passed during which he prepared for this strug­
gle. He extended his influence and his power to the ends
of the earth. He got control over many of the sources of
power within the great nations so that they were either
forced into partiality toward him or submitted to him.

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Whenever he mustered his force against one of these pow­
ers, he appropriated many of its interests and wore it down
as both the ancient and modem history of great world
powers in fact shows. What then could one expect when
this enemy attacked a people just beginning to awaken, a
people still in the first stage of their social and political
development, a people who for centuries had remained sub­
jugated by a tyrannical rule which almost stripped them
of their essence and who, having rid themselves of this
oppressive rule, were still trying to extract their liberty and
independence from the strongest and most influential na­
tions in the world? Zionism does not only consist of those
groups and colonies scattered in Palestine; it is a world­
wide net, well prepared scientifically and financially,
which dominates the influential countries of the world, and
which has dedicated all its strength to the realization of its
goal, namely building a national home for the Jewish peo­
ple in Palestine.
It is, therefore, our duty to acknowledge the terrifying
strength which the enemy possesses and to take it into ac­
count when we view our present problem and try to re­
medy it. Indeed the worst thing which has afflicted us in
recent years is that while we have expatiated to others on
the evidence of this strength and on its dangers, we have
ourselves minimized it and overlooked its daily increasing
pressure. Then when the battle broke out, our internal pro­
paganda began to tell us about imaginary victories and to
benumb the Arab peoples with the easiness of our military
struggle and our ability to overcome and conquer—until
the disaster struck, accompanied by a bitter reaction. It is
to be hoped that one of the good'things to come out of this
violent shock will be that it will return us to reality, and
rouse us to the facts of the situation, and help us properly
to assess the matter and to make provision for it.

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 I have said that it is our duty to acknowledge the ter­
rifying strength of the enemy and not to blame ourselves
more than is justified. It is also right, and a duty, to ac­
knowledge our mistakes, to see clearly the sources of weak­
ness in our being, and to know the extent of our respons­
ibility in this calamity which has afflicted us. The worst
of all evils would be for us to shirk our responsibility, to
blind ourselves to the extent of our shortcomings, and to
place the blame on this or that external thing without see­
ing the weakness, the defects, and the corruption within.
How often we hear amongst us today abuse of the
Jews, reviling of the British, the Americans, the Russians,
the Security Council, the United Nations mediator—of all
who stand in opposition to us in this struggle. There is no
doubt that these have been, and are, hostile to us; and it
is necessary for us to warn them, to remember the position
each one has taken, and to settle our account with them
whenever the opportunity occurs and sufficient strength
has been achieved. There is no doubt that we must charge
each of them with his responsibility before history and that
we must confront him with it to the extent that we are
able. There is no doubt that we must preserve this—all of
it—in our hearts, make our children and our grandchildren
understand it, and take it into account in planning our
policies and managing our affairs. At the same time we
must not forget that policies still rest on strength and self-
interest and that all of these nations pursue their own in­
terests first. In the present disaster it is not enough to un­
mask others and charge them with their share of the res­
ponsibility if we have not first unmasked our own weak
points and charged ourselves with the consequences and
the fate that our own faults have caused. Refusing to face
reality and blaming others is a dangerous evil in ordinary
times; in times of trials and misfortunes it is the very
source of evil and of mischief. Such times are the best

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for taking stock of oneself, for discovering one’s own weak
points, and for taking action to cure them, or at least for
making a beginning of it.
When we view this disaster and appraise its extent
and its results, it is also right and fair for us to know that
it is only one battle in a long war. If we have lost this
battle, that does not mean that we have lost the whole war
or that we have been finally routed with no possibility of
a later revival.
This battle is decisive from numerous points of view,
for on it depends the establishment or extinction of the
Zionist state. If we lose the battle completely, and the Zion­
ist state is established, the Jews of the whole world will no
doubt muster all their strength to preserve, reinforce, and
expand it, as they mustered their strength to found it. But
history is full of surprises; a being imposed by force and
not based on the laws of nature and society cannot last
when confronted by living natural forces moving in the
stream of history.
There is, therefore, no justification for letting despair
overcome us, paralyze our efficiency, and take away our
confidence in ourselves and in our nation as it has done to
many of us; for despair was the cause of that collapse of
spiritual values which, as I have said, is a more serious
danger and more to be feared than the material loss and
the military defeat. We must in fact prepare for tomorrow
carefully, make provision for the coming battle, and learn
from our enemies how to take the long-range view, how to
achieve well-knit organization, how to plan our course of
action, and how to advance steadily over a period of years,
even generations, in order to achieve what we seek and at­
tain our goal. How many disasters have overtaken the Jews
in their history! Indeed how often has their existence in
Palestine been exposed in recent years to collapse and ex-

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tinction! But they continued to be patient in the face of
obstacles, to bear misfortunes, and to keep their eyes on
the fixed goal until they reached that degree of strength
and boldness which they have today attained.
By advocating that we take far-reaching action and
that we view the war in its entirety instead erf confining
ourselves to the present battle, I do not mean that we
should merely await the course of events and depend on
favorable circumstances. No! Optimistic reliance on some
inevitable success which depends on favorable circum­
stances is no better than the overpowering pessimism and
paralyzing despair which the present defeat has caused.
Each is an escape from reality and, either consciously or
unconsciously, is a renunciation of the responsibility and
the duty which falls c h i u s .
By long-range view and action I mean care and plan­
ning on a wide scale for a long period. I mean facing
reality as it is, specifying the goal we seek, having a well-
laid plan for attaining our aim, and implementing the plan
day after day—without despair or any of the various other
types of escapism. This is the course which history has
outlined for victory in wars, for building states, and for
bringing nations into being.
***
I hope that, in the above discussion, I have hit on the
truth in describing our present disaster in Palestine and
that I have made clear its seriousness and gravity, and the
intensity with which it now afflicts us and will afflict us in
the future. I aiso hope that I have pictured the disaster
as it really is and that I have outlined the course which we
must take in relation to it and the viewpoint from which
we must look at it, for this is the necessary first step in
analyzing a problem and studying the ways of solving it.

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 TH E D U T Y OF TH E T HI NK E R

One of the worst effects which trials and tribulations 13

have on nations is [internal] dissension and wrangling
among both individuals and groups. Because of the intens­
ity of their affliction these appear stupefied and lost. They
now have this opinion and now that of the road to salva­
tion. They follow any guide who claims leadership.
As a result of the disaster which befell the Arabs erf
Palestine, something of this sort has happened to the mass
of the Arab people, even to the leaders of opinion and the
cultured groups among them. The fact is that not only
were hundreds of thousands of the people of that unfortu­
nate country scattered from their homes, and not only do
they wander about helplessly, but also their thoughts 14
and their opinions, as well as the thoughts of their compat­
riots throughout the area, have been scattered and forced
to wander. There has spread among them a babel of opin­
ions about which the least that can be said is that it
is a warning of greater evil [to come) if it is not eliminated
and if clear thinking and a unified will do not take its
place.
The various accusations which are heaped now on one
[individual or group] and now on another and which pour
forth in every direction are one of the manifestations of
this babel. As a result you see people divided into parties,
allying themselves with one of the Arab states against an­
other, and attacking one or another of the leaders. They
busy themselves with such things rather than with think­
ing about the common enemy and the common grave mis­
fortune.

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 Likewise we disagree in the interpretation of the dis­
aster and in the analysis of its causes. Some of us refer it
back to the lack of propaganda for our just case, others
to the inadequacy of our military preparations, still others
to the divergent views and actions taken by our Arab
states, or to other points of weakness within us.
This babel appears in a special way among the ranks
of the politically conscious youths, who are ready for ac­
tion, prepared to give their very existence in the service of
their country, and ready to share the burdens of their na­
tion. These youths look into themselves and into their past.
They examine what action they have taken, what parties
they have attempted to found, and what efforts they have
exerted in the service of the general cause. They find, how­
ever, that none of these efforts has achieved the sought-
after goal. None has been able to ward off the calamity or
to satisfy the yearnings or the insistent ambition of these
youths to serve and liberate their nation. They ask what
they must do to prevent the present evils and to defend
against future dangers. They do not find before them a
clear path or a designated method. Thus they flail around
aimlessly in various directions, look now here and now
there, and for the most part their thinking turn in a vici­
ous circle—without any positive result or tangible effect.
This group of young men—wide-awake, groping for
the path of duty, prepared for action and sacrifice, and
burning to serve their country—is the treasure of this na­
tion and its provisions for the future. Today, the minds of
these youths are disturbed, their thoughts divided, and their
wills shattered. Sit in any of their assemblies; you will see
this disturbance prevailing, and you will feel the painfully
violent confusion about interpreting the present situation
and seeking the paths to salvation.
One cannot dispute the fact that this confusion is not

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an unmitigated evil, for it indicates introspection, stock­
taking, and spiritual suffering—all of which may open up
new roads for the future. As suffering arouses strength in
the soul and urges it to greater exertion and more intense
effort, so introspection is the first step toward intellectual
progress.
However, the introspection and suffering may be
squandered and go for nothing, or even revert to evil and
malevolence, for introspection may lead to perplexity and
loss, and suffering may lead to killing despair or destruc­
tive negativism. This result may come to pass unless en­
lightened thought intervenes and distinguishes right
from wrong, positive elements from negative, factors of
strength and hope from factors of weakness and disap­
pointment and at the same time supports the former over
the latter and redirects the latter in such a way as to
preserve the nation and maintain its confidence in itself.
These then are the functions of conscious thought in
this catastrophe, or in fact in any crisis. It should shoulder
the leadership of opinion in the midst of disturbance and
perplexity. It should throw light on the disordered situa­
tion, explain it as it really is, and distinguish between its
various elements and facets. The function of this kind of
thought is also to separate causes from results [giving pri­
macy to the former over the latterl, to distinguish underly­
ing causes from immediate ones, the essential from the
contingent, and thus to give to everything its rightful im­
portance and to evaluate it properly in any complicated
and knotty operation.
Having made these distinctions, conscious thought
then addresses itself to a description of the methods of
cure. It treats the immediate causes with an immediate re­
medy and directs against the long-range causes a broad,
long-range course of action, and so neither attaches the

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same degree of importance to outward appearances as to
underlying factors nor gives to contingencies [the emphasisl
which must be given to essentials.
Perhaps the men of action and those who bear great
responsibilities may not be pleased with the thinker’s
shouldering of such a task; and their position will be justifi­
ed if the thought is of that abstract type which is not rooted
in reality or if the thinker is not aware of his responsibility
and does not evaluate it properly. Then they will have the
right to say, “W ar through a telescope is easy,” and to
look askance at the thinker and to make light of him.
Further, that type of thinking will justify such an opinion
and will in fact deserve to fail on its own, regardless of
the view and attitude of the men of action.
In fact, that awareness of responsibility which in this
desperate situation is incumbent on every single individual
in the nation, but especially on its thinkers, was in itself the
incentive for writing this little study, which incentive, I
hope, redeems whatever errors or weaknesses that it may
contain. As long as it emanates from this awareness and is
armed with the weapon of good intention, it will not fear
censure or blame for showing up error, for delimiting res­
ponsibility, for uncovering the roots of the present calam­
ity and for frankly and strongly advocating their removal.
Perhaps it will have some value in throwing light on the
road to salvation and in stimulating the mind and the soul
toward that road.

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 THE I MM ED I A T E R E M E D Y

We have said that the disaster of the Arabs in Pales­

tine—like other analogous historical events —has both im­
mediate and underlying causes. Thought must distinguish
between these two types of causes and make clear the type
of remedy which suits each and which ensures its mastery
and elimination.
Therefore, let us first examine the immediate causes so
that we may ascertain the action necessary to cope with
the present destructive danger, to stand in the face of it,
and to prevent being overcome by it—even if it is not now
possible to destroy it completely and definitively.
However, we must first realize that the distinction be­
tween immediate and underlying causes is not absolute,
for in many cases the former are only symptoms of the
latter, fruits growing from its seeds. Human life is not a
simple matter which can be partitioned, organized, and
artificially compartmentalized. Thus, the path of the im­
mediate remedy is not independent of the path of the fun­
damental, underlying remedy. Rather, it is bound up with
it and derived from it. The thinker or the reformer must
undertake the two duties together and view them as one.
He should not neglect the relationship between them, but
should apply himself to each, while keeping his eye simul­
taneously on the other, with wisdom, prudence, and good
management and organization.
It is of course impossible in this study to try to treat
the details, with all their ramifications, of either the im­
mediate or the underlying remedy, especially since those

_ 1 _ O rig in a l from
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details can be seen as parts of a whole and go back, along
with their ramifications, to principles which join and unify
them.
What are those principles on which the immediate re­
medy should be based, and what are the fundamental pil­
lars on which it should rest?
*
**
The fundamental principles of this remedy—of this
crusade, rather—are in my opinion five: The first of them
is to strengthen the sense of danger and to sharpen the
will to fight. Here is the first step and the most basic fac­
tor. Some may consider the statement to be mistaken or
irresponsible. And why shouldn’t they! when the columns
of our press deluge us with, articles which itemize the
Zionist danger and warn us against it, when speeches on
this subject are incessantly heard everywhere, and when the
topic of Zionism and its evils are on almost every lip and
tongue?
In reality, despite these statements and actions, the
A rab masses, and even a large segment of the educated
classes, continue to be far from having a sufficient aware­
ness of the great danger which Zionism represents for every
country in the Arab world. They have not been shown in
a concrete way the various aspects of this danger to the
sources of their livelihood, even to their very existence.
Despite the displaced thousands they have seen and the
news of destruction, killing, mutilation, and other awful
things they have heard, they have not perceived the true
extent of Zionism, its world-wide strength, its goal of con­
quest and annihilation, and its naked cruelty in realizing
this goal. They have not perceived the intensity of the
hidden yearning in the breasts of the Jews, a yearning
which has been increasing throughout the ages, to found
their own state in Palestine, or the extent to which the

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flower of their youth has in recent years been saturated
with Nazism and other “isms” which encourage domina­
tion and conquest. Finally, the A rab masses do not under­
stand how much the Jews lode at the Arab countries, which
are rich in resources and occupy a central position in the
world, as a field for their national expansionist struggle.

But leave the masses of the people aside. Do we not

see that some of our rulers and of the pillars of our Arab
states give to problems of their individual states a prior­
ity equal to, or even higher than, that which they give to
the Zionist problem, thus allowing themselves to be dis­
tracted from remedying the greater, more inclusive danger
by attaching undue importance to the lesser, temporary
danger? Neither the problem of the Sudan, nor the Port­
smouth treaty, nor the Syro-Lebanese currency question,
nor any other such problem is as far-reaching or as dan­
gerous as Zionism, because the imperialism and enslave­
ment represented by these problems, no matter how long
they may last nor how deep their roots may be, are a tem­
porary evil. The aim of Zionist imperialism, on the other
hand, is to exchange one country for another, and to an­
nihilate one people so that another may be put in its place.
This is imperialism, naked and fearful, in its truest color
and worst form. On this basis it is not right that we should
be distracted from it even by those national problems which
have worried, and still worry, our governments—to say
nothing about petty politics, harmful gossiping, partisan
rivalries, and local desires. All of these shameful tenden­
cies should have disappeared and been put aside during
this critical situation and in the face of this imminent
danger.

We hear and read in the press much about the need

for propagandizing our case in foreign countries. Although
there is some truth in this statement, the thorough observer

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will see that in addition to this foreign propaganda we
must organize domestic propaganda at home and that our
need for the one is not less than our need for the other—
indeed, it may be greater and more compelling.
The important thing in this internal summons is that
is should make clear to the A rab mind and the Arab
soul that the Zionist danger is the greatest danger to the
being of the Arabs. The other dangers either threaten some
limited part of their being or else they include both the
Arab world and the rest of the world. This danger threat­
ens the very center of Arab being, its entirety, the founda­
tion of its existence. All other (dangers) are simple in rela­
tion to it and may, for the sake of repelling this most seri­
ous and all-important danger and for the sake of preserving
one’s self from it, be endured, or at least have their solu­
tion postponed.
This fact is what must be placed before the A rab peo­
ple, and it must be supported by facts and figures. This is
what must be made clear to the minds of our rulers and
of the public. This is what we must sum up by incisive
ideas and judicious phrases, and what we must teach our
children and the students of our schools day and night.
The departments of propaganda in our governments must
first devote themselves to this, employing the press, the
radio, and every other means of publicity, in order to in­
tensify in the souls of all Arabs an awareness of the danger
—of the greatest, the unique, danger —so that every
thought which we have and every action which we per­
form will be influenced by this feeling and will issue from
it. When this awamess grows strong, the will to struggle,
which unfortunately is still weak among us, will grow with
it. Our struggle in this battle was, in general, the struggle
erf an effete dilettante and not the struggle of one ready to
die—a s though only lip service and not actual obligations
were involved.
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 This mobilization of feeling and will is, in my opinion,
the first fundamental principle of the present struggle 23
to repel the grave Zionist danger.

The second fundamental principle is material mobil­

ization in all fields of action, that is, marshalling the com­
plete military strength of the nation and directing it into
the field of combat. Some may say that the Arab states
are still young, with small, ill-equipped armies and that
the problems and dangers which they face both within and
without do not allow them to put all their military re­
sources into the field. There is some truth in this. How­
ever, it is difficult to believe that these seven states could
not muster up more than they did muster, or that they
would not be able—if they had true perception of the dan­
ger and will for self-defense and if the course of action
were judicious and the planning proper—to build a mili­
tary force much stronger than that which they sent into
the field and which was incapable of standing before the
Zionists. It is in truth a shame and a disgrace that the
Arab states—and their millions about whom we contin­
uously brag—appeared with this pitiful number of troops,
impotent to level the strongholds of Zionism or even to
hold firm before them. If the Zionists, within their nar­
row geographical limits, have been able to equip them­
selves so abundantly and so extensively, then certainly the
Arabs, within the broad expanse of their territories, which
are open to both East and West, are not unable to import
through legal or illegal channels what they need, or at least
that which will make them militarily stronger than they
were, assuming that their previous effort was the best of
which they were [then] capable. Although we should recog- 24
nize the abundance of Zionist resources and the awe­
inspiring financial and political forces which support them;

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nevertheless, the potentialities of the A rab states from
these points of view are not small either, if they are pro­
perly exploited, highly organized, and soundly managed.

Next to military mobilization stands that nerve-center,

economic mobilization. I do not believe that the Arab peo­
ples, if they understood the reality of the danger, would
hold back from any sacrifice necessary for this mobiliza­
tion. It was truly saddening that the Arab defenders were
in need of the most primitive of medicines and medical
instruments and that their leaders had to direct their steps
toward Beirut, Damascus, and the other A rab centers in
order to seek some of the fundamental things that they
needed. It is difficult to imagine that such things were lack­
ing at a time when all responsible governmental and po­
pular quarters knew that we were about to enter a war,
when indeed they themselves were threatening war. It was
highly regrettable to see those leaders knocking <5n various
doors—now getting what they wanted and now failing to
get it—with no one specified authority concerned with at
least this aspect of the struggle.
How painful are those observations which we hear
from foreign visitors and witnesses who had come to the
A rab countries at the time of the fighting and who did not
see in them any sign of real war, but who saw instead
thousands of automobiles gluttonously devouring one
of the most important materials of war, and who watched
the people busying themselves with pastimes and pleasures,
parties and social activities, just as they had done previous­
ly. The war, launched by their state and the other A rab
states, made no change in their habits, nor did it prevent
them from having any of their pleasures. When one of us
heard, or hears, the observations of these critics, be they
sincere or not, he finds himself incapable of replying. He
only feels deep shame inside.

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 Along with military and economic mobilization goes
political mobilization. Internally this involves unifying the
goals and policies of the Arab states; externally, winning
the support of foreign states. There is no denying that the
Arab politicians have done their best in regard to the
former. Perhaps they cannot go farther than they have,
as long as greed and the interests of dynasties and individ­
uals continue to hold sway and as long as public opinion
in the A rab world has not awakened and strengthened itself
to a degree which would make it possible to put enough
pressure on the selfseeking to strip them of their ambitions
before they, and their ambitions, crumble and go to utter
destruction.1
The A rab politicians have also made an attempt at
political action in the foreign field. They have sent delega­
tions, communicated with the representatives of foreign
states, and disseminated their propaganda at international
conferences, but their efforts in this respect have been
scattered and irresolute. In this field there is still plenty of
room for action. Recently the Arab League has become
aware of this fact, for according to the press, it has called
upon some of its leaders to undertake a strong political ef­
fort in western Europe before the opening of the United
Nations Assembly this coming September. O ur attempts
are always thus: not carried out through a well-laid, far-
reaching plan, but improvised at the last moment.
I will treat relations with the great powers in the fifth
section of this chapter. However, there are other states
with whom relations must be strengthened, such as the
Latin American States. Despite the fact that most of these
nations are subservient to American influence and Zionist
pressure, it is not right to neglect them or give them up
entirely. There are also the Asian nations further to the
1. C f. K o r in ( C t lr o . 1347 I, IS : 23. — RRU

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east who share with us the dangers of Western imperialism,
who have looked with favor on our case and have assisted
us, and with whom we must strengthen our relations in
order to make this assistance secure and to fortify it. It is
unfortunate that our ties with these nations are still weak,
and do not on the whole go beyond contact between our
delegations and theirs at international conferences at times
when the danger becomes acute and when other powers
ally themselves against us.
So much then for what concerns political relations
with governments and the mobilization of Arab strength
in that respect. However, there is the further matter of
popular propaganda and of directing it towards public
opinion in these states. In this matter the efforts of the
Arab states have been very feeble and have come from
different sources; sometimes from the League itself, some­
times from the individual states, and sometimes from the
Arab Offices,1 though in whose name these latter spoke is
not completely clear. These efforts should have been
strengthened, intensified, co-ordinated, and united in order
to make them fruitful and effective. However, popular pro­
paganda will not, no matter how much it is strengthened
and intensified, have any immediate effect in the present
battles because the time is short and the danger imminent;
the influencing of public opinion so that it may in its turn
influence governments is a long-term operation. Thus, al­
though we do need to strengthen and extend this propa­
ganda in preparation for coming battles and the long-
range war, yet most of our effort in the present battle
must be expended on contacts with the governments them­
selves, on speaking the language of self-interest not the
language of right and justice, and on mobilizing all our
strength for bargaining. This mobilization of our political
I. O n th e Arab ( In fo rm a tio n ) O ffice*, r o n su lt J. C . H u r cw iti, T h e S tr u g g le f o r
P a le s tin e ( N ew Y ork . 1950 ). pp. 228-9. - RBW

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strength must be organized and go hand in hand with the
mobilization of our military and economic resources—and
in fact of all aspects of our life. This course must be taken
if we want to escape and survive. Conversely, to under­
estimate and disregard this general mobilization will lead us
to a state worse than that to which it brought some of the
great European powers in the recent war. There is no ques­
tion but that the source of such underestimation is what
we referred to above, namely, inadequate perception of the
danger and an insufficiently developed will to struggle.
War today has become total war, not confined to
troops in the field of battle, but involving all the people;
not content with some of the resources of the nation, but
demanding the mobilization of them in their totality. Our
enemies have understood this fundamental attribute of mo­
dem war, and thus they have made suitable provisions and
have dedicated to it all of their resources in all fields.
This is our duty at the present time, and we must set
ourselves to this kind of mobilization. If it forces us to
halt projects for reform and for building up our countries
internally, and even if we have to divert to the war effort
appropriations for public works, education, and agricul­
ture, in fact all the income of the Arab states—above the
minimum necessary for living—so be it! Roads, buildings,
schools, UNESCO1, parties and banquets will be of
no value if the Zionists win a clear-cut victory in this bat­
tle, establish their state, and sink their fangs into the body
of the Arab nation.
***
Further, it is obvious that this mobilization in each of
the Arab states will not suffice unless there is a longer range
unity than that reached in the earlier stages of the battle.
1. A t t h t tim e t h is w as w r itte n th e L e b a n e se G overn m en t w u m ik in g ela b o r a te pre
p ara tio n s fo r th e G en era l C o n fe re n ce o f U N E SC O in B e iru t. — CZ

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Therefore, the third basic principle in the present crusade is
the greatest possible unification among the Arab states—in
the fields of war, politics, economics, etc. No doubt this
unification is, as we have already said, limited by the gen­
eral situations in these states and by their own interests,
ambitions, and fears. It will not be possible to bring about
this unification in any real sense unless there are far-reach­
ing, comprehensive changes. Unification, therefore, enters
into the sphere of the fundamental solution of the Palestine
problem (and of the A rab problem in its entirety), which
we will cover in the next chapter.
However, while awaiting this fundamental and far-
reaching solution, every possible measure must be taken to
ensure as much co-ordination and unity as possible in the
efforts of the Arab states. I do not believe that a single
Arab, who enjoys the least power of observation or
thought, has been taken in by the speeches and declarations
of our politicians after the meetings of the Political Com­
mittee [of the Arab League! to the effect that the Arab
states have never at any time been more completely in
agreement than they now are. and that the A rab League
has never been stronger than it is in this difficult situation.
Actually, one might guess from the mere quantity of these
declarations that they are indicative of a certain weakness
and disunity, the spread of which frightens [their authorsl
and the concealment of which they therefore desire, and
that the League has not yet acquired sufficient power or
strength to enable it to impose on its members a strong
unity of thought and action.
How many times did the general staffs of these states
meet during the battle? or in the four-week truce dur­
ing which we slept on a feather bed while the enemy was
busy organizing day and night? One wonders whether our
military leadership was resolute about its business, whether

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it organized its efforts, and agreed on the steps to be taken.
Is not the best indication of weakness the fact that we
heard every day four or five communiques rather than
a single one? Must we not so standardize the organization
and weapons of the A rab armies that it will be possible
for an Arab soldier to serve in any one of them according
to the need?
Is it not possible to create in the field of politics a less
cumbersome and more efficient technique for coordina­
tion and unification than the Political Committee, which
is for the most part composed of the heads of govern­
ment of the Arab states, who rush to it now and then,
although each bears heavy responsibilities which pull him
back to his own country? Is it not possible to create in
a single place a permanent and continuous committee en­
trusted with the organization and execution of the total
effort by the light of a single policy laid down by the gov­
ernments?
In the field of economics the League’s Economic Com­
mittee, which in this critical situation ought to have been
the instrument for organizing and co-ordinating the econo­
mic and financial aspects of the war, has not uttered a
whisper. Nor does any one know whether it has actually
been formed and brought into existence, or whether it still
exists only on paper.
The same situation exists in the field of propaganda.
One would assume the achievement of agreement and unity
in this field above all others—it being the foremost symbol
of the Arab states’ struggle and the outward index of their
firmness and of the steadfastness of their intentions. The
fact is exactly contrary to the assumption. The A rab High­
er Committee' has its delegations, and the A rab Office3 has
1. O n t h e H ig h e r A rab C o m m itte e , c o n a u lt H u r e w ltt, o p . e i t . , p a s s im . — R B W
2. S e e a b o v e , p . 2 0 , n , 1. — R B W

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its branches. In fact during the most delicate phases of the
problem representatives of these two organizations existed
simultaneously both in New York and London. Their ef­
forts were not coordinated; in fact the reverse was true—
they held aloof from each other, competed, and quarreled.
No doubt the individual members of these delegations and
of their counterparts who were sent to other countries
exerted the utmost effort of which they were capable, but
in the end the lade of unity, the overlapping erf authority,
and the absence of responsibility paralyzed and nullified
their work and even brought about results contrary to
those desired.
I have said that this unification which we seek in the
fields of war, politics, economics, propaganda, etc., is link­
ed to the circumstances and present situation in the Arab
states and that unification cannot rise above the level of
this situation. Unification is the consequence and the fruit;
the existent Arab being is the determinant and the root.
However, the danger is great and imminent. Because of
this fact, it is not possible to wait for that fundamental
transformation in the Arab situation which will ensure the
basic and'necessary unity capable of guarding the Arab
being and defending it from misfortune. Therefore, those
in power and those who bear responsibility in the Arab
states must place the general goal before particular goals;
and public opinion in the various Arab lands must contin­
uously urge co-ordination and unification, must exert as
much pressure as possible in this direction, and must rebel
at every division in the Arab front so as to overcome to
the greatest extent possible the obstacles which today con­
front Arab security and thus protect the being of the Arabs
in this battle.
***
The fourth fundamental principle in the present Arab

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crusade is the participation of popular forces. The struggle
must not be limited to governments and regular armies,
but it must extend to all classes of society so that every 32
individual in the nation will undertake his share of it.
It will of course be said that modem warfare is not
like old fashioned war, that it demands types of training
and discipline in the use of the mechanical weapons of
war, of which no irregular soldier is capable, and that such
a soldier may on many occasions hamper military opera­
tions instead of helping and strengthening them.
However, the experience of the nations in the recent
world war, in which the largest, most violent, and most
complicated weapons were employed, indicates that po­
pular forces, if their organization is good, can be a power­
ful support to regular armies, and that in fact they may
on some occasions give the decisive blow. This conclusion
was proved by popular struggles in Poland, Russia, the
Balkans, France, and other states both large and small. It
was proved that the attachment of peoples to the soil, their
tenacity for the land of their fathers and grandfathers, and
their defense of their families and honor, that all these
qualities inspire them with a courage, and a willingness
to face sacrifice and death, which compensate for the more
thorough training of the organized armies, and in fact
strengthen the spirit of resistance in these armies and in
the entire nation.
Why, however, do we look far afield when the enemy
before us gives us the best indication and the most eloquent
proof of the contention? In his struggle did this enemy
limit himself to organized armies, or did he infuse the strug­
gle through the totality of the Zionist people—among its
men and its women, in its various communities [through- 33
out the world] and colonies [in Palestinel—so that the in­
dividual felt himself to be a unit in the fighting body, and

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therefore both defended and attacked with every bit of
power and life that he had? If this is the way with the ag­
gressor, how would it be with the victim of aggression, de­
fending his land, his blood, and his honor?
It will also be said that the Arabs of Palestine have
proved themselves weak and impotent; that no sooner had
the first bombs fallen than they fled in utter rout, evacuated
their cities and their strongholds, and surrendered them
to the enemy on a silver platter, that a large number of
them had fled even before the battle and had taken refuge
in the other Arab countries and in remote regions of Pal­
estine.
I do not deny that cowardice and disintegration have
appeared among the Arabs, in Palestine and elsewhere,
but this sweeping accusation is ill-founded and is repu­
diated by the total history of this people, with their record
of natural bravery and of courage and sacrifice in battle.
It is likewise repudiated by the successive revolts which
this people has undertaken during the last thirty years
against the oppressive power [of the occupation] and by
its attack on Zionism. It is also repudiated by the wealth
and resources which the sons of its villages and towns have
devoted, at the highest of prices, to the purchase of wea­
pons and munitions for the defense of their existenoe, and
by the valor they have shown and the victories they have
achieved in the “Liberation Armies,”1 in the “Holy Cru­
sade” [forcesl,2 and in fact wherever they have had a share
in the leadership and organization.
No indeed! The cause is not to be found in the peo­
ple themselves, but in the leaders who did not train or
arm them, who in fact did not even facilitate their at­
1. J a y ash al-lnqadh, v o lu n t e e r A rab fo r c e * u n d er th e o o m n u n d o f F a w ii a l-Q a w u q ji;
c o n s u lt H u r e w lt i, op. c l t p p . 3 1 0 , 313. — R BW
2 . Al-Jihad al-Muqaddas, ir r e g u la r tr o o p s u n d e r th e com m an d o f ‘A b d a l-Q ad ir a l-
H u M y in i; c o n s u lt H u r e w ita , loc. elt. — RBW

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tempts to arm themselves or indicate to them a course of
action in their struggle. A re there not among the thou­
sands of young Arabs, both educated and uneducated, a
few who could be prepared for this mass struggle and who
could act as a leaven for spreading the spirit of this strug­
gle throughout the whole nation? Is it not a disgrace and
a shame that a large group of the educated youth of the
country casts about and searches for a course of action
by which to contribute its share in the war effort—and
finds none? Is it not a sign of weakness and defeatism that
it is impossible, or next to impossible, to volunteer?
Let this be a warning to those who distrust the peo­
ple and oppose popular participation in the struggle, for
thereby they give up one of the fundamental elements in
the crusade, and in fact they choke off the spirit of the
struggle at its source. In any case, even though this spirit
may weaken for a time, it will inevitably rise. It will per­
haps first revolt against those who have repressed it. Then
it will be released in all parts of the nation so that it can
transform the crusade to preserve the A rab being and de­
fend the fatherland into a total crusade in the real sense
of the word.
»**
The readiness of the Arabs to bargain and to sacrifice
some of their interests in order to repel the larger danger
must be another fundamental principle in the present Arab
crusade to protect Palestine, for we must realize that we
have not yet attained that degree of strength and power
which will permit us to obtain all our demands and gua­
rantee all our interests in one full swoop. We are compelled
to sacrifice some things for the sake of others. A t the same
time the great nations have in our country important in­
terests over which we can bargain in order to obtain our
goals, for in an age in which the lives of nations are

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interwined it is impossible for any one nation to solve its
problems independently of other nations and without ex­
changing interests and assets.
However, this exchange must not take place without
conditions, which, if not fulfilled, would nullify the profit
sought and would in fact transform it into evil and loss.
One of these conditions is that the exchange should not be
motivated by feeling, “traditional friendship,” or “natural
alliance,” for in most cases these are only snares and traps
which conceal greed and mask exploitation and coloniza­
tion. The only basis for this exchange in the world of cur­
rent international transactions is self-interest, nothing else.
Thus another condition is that the price of any interest
that is conceded must be the safeguarding of a correspond­
ing interest. For instance we should not ally ourselves
with the democratic states against the Communist states
or persecute leftist parties in our country for no benefit
or for the sake of friendship, or because of mere
impotence. In the same way this exchange must seek
to satisfy the over-all interests of the country and not the
interest of any individual, individuals, or class within it.
For these special interests should not become—consciously
or unconsciously—the allies of others (foreigners) against
the common people. Finally, the interests of the nation
must be organized in accordance with their relative impor­
tance. The lesser must be sacrificed in favor of the greater,
the temporary in favor of the permanent.
There can be no disputing that the primary interest of
the Arabs in this stage of their history is to protect their
existence from the Zionist danger. Because of this fact
it is incumbent on the Arabs, given their special position
and the general international situation, to sacrifice other
interests for this cause. However, they must also make this
sacrifice with their eyes open and on the above-stated bases.

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Otherwise, the bargaining will be detrimental, the profit
will only run in one direction, and the Arabs will squander
those interests in addition to their greater interest in Pal­
estine.
Let no one think that this bargaining is an easy mat­
ter, for it means leading the nation along a narrow, twisted
path surrounded by quagmires and pitfalls. It demands in­
sight, prudence, and an understanding of the Western mind
and the clashing interests of states. But it demands above
all devotion to the interest of the nation and the sacrifice
of personal goals and ambitions for the sake of the nation.
These are the qualities required of the man of politics who
would undertake this delicate and dangerous operation. By
these qualities will his astuteness be measured, and his
genuineness tested. By them will his politics be lifted above
the narrow, ignoble meaning of the word and become the
instrument of constructive, creative forces, “improving”
everything it touches.1 If he has these characteristics, he
will merit the renown and glory that history accords to
constructive politicians, or rather to true statesmen.
___,. A -—
These are, in my opinion, the five fundamental prin­
ciples of the present struggle: perception of the danger and
the will to fight, general mobilization, unification of the
efforts of the Arab states, the participation of popular for­
ces, and wide-awake international bargaining. These and
others are fundamental conditions for success in our
immediate endeavor to repel the Zionist danger and protect
our being. Further, they are essential because of the [un­
expectedly rapid! change in the Zionist scheme and be­
cause of the progress which it has achieved in its latest
phase.
I. T h is in c o n tr a st to th e w ell-k n ow n u y i n g o f M uham mad
p o lit ic s to u c h c n , it rorru p ta .” — CZ

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 When we entered the present war, the predominant at­
titude was that the situation had not changed since 1939
and that the skirmishes, sporadic demonstrations, and lo­
calized attacks which we launched in our revolts against
the mandatory state would be sufficient in the present war.
We do not seem to have realized that at that time the aim
of the struggle was to annoy the mandatory state, to weak­
en its prestige, and to shake the foundation of its power,
thereby influencing public opinion in it and in the world
at large in order to lighten the pressure of its rule and repel
the Zionist danger, which depended on its protection. Since
Britain was a mandatory power and its rule, at least in
theory, temporary, and since its military forces were much
stronger than those which the people of Palestine could
muster, it was natural that their efforts to struggle and rebel
should have been of that type.
Now the situation has changed. The struggle is no lon­
ger directed against a mandatory state but against a group
which believes in its right to the country and which as a
result of its influence and its overwhelming propaganda
is supported in this belief by a large part of world public
opinion. Further it is prepared to throw all its forces into
the field, because for it this battle is one of life or death.
The Arabs are before it and the sea behind.1 If it fails now,
its dream and the strenuous efforts which it has expended
throughout the years will have come to nought.
Furthermore, in recent years Zionism has taken good
care to complete its preparations and to strengthen its
equipment. It has changed from weak, disorganized colo­
1. T h is ia an a llu a io n to th « fa m o iu a n eech attrib u te d to T ariq ibn-Z iyad, th e M nalim
le a d e r w h o In 711 in v a d e d S p a in and d e str o y e d th e V ia ig o th le k in gd om th e r e . H e
d e liv e r e d it on th e e v e o f th e d e c ia iv e b a ttle (J n ly 19, 7 1 1 ) a t th e m outh o f th e
B erdata riv er. T ariq ’a fa lte r in g troop * w ere inapired to v ic to r y by th e a p e e e h ,
w h ic h b e g a n , “ 0 p e o p le , w h ere ia th e e e c a p e ? T h e a ee ia b eh in d y o n , and t h e
e n e m y ie in fr o n t o f yon...** F o r th e t e x t e o n e n lt al-M aqqari, N a fh t l - T i b (C airo,
13 0 2 ), v o l. I, pp . 112-3. — RBW

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nies into a well-knit, vigorous, and unified force. Skir­
mishes, sporadic attacks, and partial mobilization are no
longer sufficient against it. Rather, as the experience of
the two world wars has driven home, the need is for total
war in the modem sense.
This change in the position of Palestine and of Zion­
ism imposes a new orientation on us in this crusade and
compels us to bring about the conditions mentioned above
—to make in fact a fundamental change in our attitude
towards the struggle—so that our crusade may bear fruit
and accomplish what it seeks, and so that we may be truly
sons of the present and not of the past. He who fights the
present with the past always loses! ►
***
The reader will say, “All this may be well and good,
but how important is it for the currently outstanding prob­
lem and for those other insistent questions which confront
us? Shall the Arabs continue the truce which was imposed
on them and which daily strengthens the side of the Zion­
ists against them? Shall the Arabs accept partition when
most of the powers of the world have united in order to
execute it? What stand shall the Arab states take towards
the United Nations if it resolves to partition Palestine by
force?”
The answer to these and other questions posed by the
present situation hinges on the military strength of the
Arabs, and on their ability to deliver a crashing and rapid
blow. Opinions on this subject conflict. There are those
who assert that at the present time and, for various rea­
sons, the Arab forces are incapable of carrying out this
task. There are also those who, from another point of
view, claim that these forces, had they had free rein and
had they been well organized and co-ordinated, could have
crushed the enemy in a short time and faced the world

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 with a fait accompli. God alone knows the answer to that
problem, but reliance must be placed on those leaders of
the Arab states who know about such matters and upon
their military experts. Therefore, no individual other than
these military experts has any business judging it. In fact
it is criminal to express any opinion on this most important
matter, unless there are clear indications of its truth, be­
cause such an expression may have serious results on the
situation in Palestine and in the Arab states themselves.
However, whether we are able to strike this crushing
blow successfully and establish a united, democratic state
in Palestine or whether we prove impotent and have parti­
tion imposed on us by the Zionist^ and the rest of the
world, the struggle must gg-OftT-ln fact, the thing which
rH ieljrltlcar o b servpr frars most is the fading away of this
spirit of struggle, for in this case, even if we succeed in
establishing a united state, the Zionist danger will grad­
ually permeate our sickly, worn body with a- cancerous
t2Sit7and one day we will wake up and, lol alTofTales-
tine"wTIF5e uTthe hands of the energetic, militant Zionist
mihdnty—militarily, financially, and spiritually. Similarly,
-IF"we should fail and partition should become a reality,
there is no doubt that we shall fall easy prey to the ex­
pansionist Zionist power and its rapacious greed. This
result will come to pass if we do not stay wid-awake, pers­
ist in our struggle, and pay careful and precise attention to
the conditions which have been laid down as necessary
for its success.
Actually, this rapacious, expansionist peril is now ap­
parent, even before the end of the battle. Therefore, let us
beware of following the twisted road which we followed
before; let us face the danger with all the will that we have
and with all the forces that we can muster, and let us ful­
fill the five fundamental conditions necessary for the pre­

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salt struggle. Thereby will we set out on the true road to
salvation!
Verily, the magnitude of the effort is measured by the
seriousness of the goal!

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 THE F U N D A M E N T A L SOLUTION

The present struggle, which we have described and

whose principles and conditions we have drawn up, is ne­
cessary for the battle we are now waging. However, the war
waged to uproot Zionism and to conquer it completely
will not be finished in a single battle. On the contrary it
will require a long and protracted war. To put it briefly—
and in all frankness and sincerity—this war will not lead to
the victory of the Arabs as long as they remain in their
present condition. The most that they will be able to ac­
complish under the circumstances is to guard against the
immediate Zionist evil and to protect as much of the Arab
being as possible. The road to final and complete victory
over this evil is different. The road to this victory lies in
a fundamental change in the situation of the Arabs, and
in a complete transformation of their modes of thought,
action, and life.
The explanation of the victory which the Zionist have
achieved—and only a person who deceives and blinds him­
self can deny the victory—lies not in the superiority of
one people over another, but rather in the superiority of
one system over another. The reason for this victory is
that the roots of Zionism are grounded in modem Western
life while we for the most part are still distant from this
life and hostile to it. They live in the present and for the
future while we continue to dream the dreams of the past
and to stupefy ourselves with its fading glory.
Only a united, progressive, Arab national being will
avert the Zionist danger, or for that matter any other

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danger which has aggressive designs on us. The first prin­
ciple, then, in the long range Arab struggle is the establish­
ment of this being, which, as I have said above, will not
be achieved unless there is a fundamental transformation
in Arab life. It follows that the external struggle to repel
the dangers of aggression is linked with the internal strug­
gle to establish a sound Arab being. In fact the latter is
the pivot of the former and is essential to its success.
I wonder whether it is right for us to say that there
is an Arab fatherland. If we mean by fatherland simply the
mountains and rivers, the plains and shores, there is no
doubt that it has existed ever since the Arabs settled in
their present abode. However, if—as is meet and right—
we mean the permeation of the meaning of the fatherland
into the Arab mentality, the birth of the will to defend
and exalt it and to forward its progress, then the answer
is no!
Another question: Is there an Arab nation? If we mean
by nation a people who speak the Arabic language and
who possess the potentialities for becoming a nation, then
the answer is in the affirmative. However, if—as is meet
and right—we mean by this word a nation which is united
in its aims, which has actualized its potentialities, which
lodes forward to the future, and which opens its eyes to
the light and exposes its breast to the good, whatever the
source of the light and the good, then the answer is no!
The Zionists did not have a fatherland in the first
and natural meaning of the word, but from their ancient
history, their present sufferings, and their future hopes
they have woven together a dream which they have re­
solved to realize, and which they have already gone a long
way towards realizing, in a land which is not theirs. Their
weapons therein are various: the penetration of this dream,
and of the will to make it a reality, down to the very mar­

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row of their bones; their unity in this will; their grounding
in modem Western life; and their readiness for rapid ad­
vance and progress.
These Zionists do not have the characteristics of a
united nation, for they are from widely separated lands,
speak different languages, and follow different ways. Their
only common bonds are religion and suffering. Despite
these facts the idea has united them, sharpened their de­
termination, and created in them the unflinching will to
struggle so that, by this will and by their unconditional
acceptance of modem civilization, they have almost ac­
complished that which is unnatural, whereas, that which
is natural to the Arabs—that they form a nation—is not
as yet accomplished. Here is the decisive difference!
The will to struggle and to survive can only be effect­
ively opposed by another will of equal or greater
strength. A unified loyalty can only be subdued by a more
complete unity and a stronger loyalty. A system steadily
pursuing modem civilization can only be conquered by a
system which is more thorough in its pursuit of it and
which is more completely armed with it. A progressive,
dynamic mentality will never be stopped by a primitive,
static mentality. To summarize, we repeat that only a uni­
ted Arab being possessing these characteristics will repel
the Zionist danger—or for that matter any danger from
abroad—and that the Arabs will attain a being of this
type only through a fundamental transformation in their
way of life. The minds of the intellectuals and of those in
the Arab countries who earnestly work for an effective and
fundamental solution of the Zionist problem—or better of
the whole Arab problem—must be so directed as to under­
stand the reality of this being and to seek ways of bring­
ing it about.

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 W hat then are the characteristics of this Arab being
which must be brought into existence?
The first of these characteristics is union. That is,
the Arabs should organize themselves into a unified state
in which their foreign and economic policies and their de­
fense forces are united. Five, or six, or seven states, each
completely independent of the otfier (not counting the weak
tie which the League represents), each concerned with its
own affairs and internal interests, each subjected to various
foreign influences and to internal forces with conflicting
interests—states in this condition cannot repel the harrow­
ing blows of our time. If, then, the union which we seek
is lunder normal circumstances] a national goal neces­
sitated by linguistic and historical ties among the Arabs
as well as by mutual self-interest, the Zionist danger has
transformed it into a condition of existence and a necessity
for life itself. F or this danger, with other foreign dangers
added to it, will assuredly worm its way through these na­
tions and hammer wedges between them. It will strengthen
the disagreements, increase various and contradictory local
self-interests, and widen the split in the Arab structure. As
long as sticks are separate or [only] tied together with a thin
strand, it is easy to break them one after another. The only
thing that will save them from damage is to strengthen the
bands so that they will not break, but will face every blow
with strength and unity and repel it with decisive loss.
However, by itself this union is not enough. In fact it
cannot even be achieved if another fundamental condition
is not met by the Arabs. This condition is economic, so­
cial, and intellectual development. For that reason we have
also described the united Arab national being which wc
seek as progressive.*
• S o m e n a tio n a lis t* fe a r t h e u s e o f w ord* a u ch a s **p r o g r e s s iv e ," “ r e v o lu t io n a r y .”
[ i n q i l a b i y a h ; t h e w ord in q ila b i t a ls o fr e q u e n tly tr a n sla te d a s tr a n s fo r m a tio n . — R B W )
e t c ., b e e a u a e th e C o m m u n is ts r e it e r a t e th e m o ft e n aa th o u g h o n ly th e C o m m u n ists can

r - l _ 37
D ig it iz e d b y t ^ j O O g lC U N IV E R S IT Y O F M IC H IG A N
 It has now become necessary for us to know, since n a ­
tionalism has become a catchword bandied about on every
tongue, that the formation of nationalism did not occur in
the West, and will never occur anywhere, until specific
economic, social, and intellectual conditions had been m et.
It was formed only when there was a breaking down of
feudalism (not to mention tribalism), sectarianism, fatalism,
and occultism. It prevailed only when the machine ap ­
peared and a primitive, static, disunited system of econo­
mics and of living was transformed into a dynamic, spe­
cialized, interdependent system, when the powerful bar­
riers between different classes of people were lowered, and
when organized, logical knowledge spread and controlled
the yearnings of the imagination and the course of thought,
thus changing a simple, naive mentality into one that is
wide-awake, open-minded, and complex.
Those who act today to create Arab nationalism and
Arab union on the basis of the present social structure are
attempting it to no avail because their efforts do not run
parallel to the course of history and the laws of society.
These efforts will never bear fruit unless the struggle for
union is bound up with the struggle for an internal re­
volution and is built on its foundation. For nationalism
and national union both arose during a definite period, the
modem period, and neither they nor that development of
thought and action which parallels them are in any way
compatible with the institutions or the mentality of ancient
times or of the Middle Ages.
This development, or rather in our case this revolu-
o n t h e m . H o w e v e r , I d o n o t h e r e im p ly e la a s w ar o r a n y th in g ale e r e fle c tin g C o m m u n ist
th e o r y . T h e t im e h aa c o m e f o r o n r group* w h ic h are a le r t fo r lib e r a tio n t o k n o w th a t
p r o g r e s s to w a r d t h e r e a lis a t io n o f lib e r ty and r e v o lt a g a in a t r e a c tio n and e x p lo ita tio n
a r e n o t th e m o n o p o ly o f C o m m u n ism . In th e aam e w a y o u r n a tio n a lia ta m uat k n o w th a t
t h e g r e a te s t d a n g e r f o r o u r n a tio n a lism i s r e a c tio n in a ll ita m a n ife s ta tio n s , an d th a t i f
t h e y r e a lly w a n t t o fig h t C o m m u n ism th e ir o n ly c o u r s e i s to h a v e t h e ir n a tio n a lism flow
w ith t h e fo r c e s o f t h e tim e s , str u g g le a g a in e t t h e c h a in s o f t h e p a s t, r e v o lt a g a in s t e x ­
p lo it a t io n , a n d g r o p e f e e th e road * t o p r o g r e ss w h e r e v e r t h s y m a y b e.
4

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tion, is therefore a necessary condition for building our
awaited being. The three attributes which we have ascribed
to this being are “nationalism.” “union,” and “progressive­
ness.” Each is tied to the others by strong bonds. Neither
of them can stand without the others. Further, this 47
progressiveness, which is necessary for national reconstruc­
tion, is at the same time an absolutely essential weapon for
combatting the Zionist danger and other aggressive dan­
gers like it. By this weapon, as we have noticed above,
the Zionists defeated us in this stage of our struggle, and
they will continue to defeat us as long as we turn our
backs on it.
***
What then are the elements of this progressiveness
and what are the goals of the revolution which we seek?
This is no place to deal with the subject in detail or to
compare the actual situation with the ideal, but briefly we
may say that the aims of this revolution finally merge into
a single clear goal. It is that we become in fact and in spirit,
as well as in name and in body, a part of the world in
which we live, that we harmonize with it in life and
thought, that we speak its language, that we tie ourselves
to its roots, and that we ally our fortunes to its fortunes.
In order to attain this goal we must take numerous steps
which will turn our life from the modes of ancient and
medieval times to the mode of modem times.
In my opinion the most important of these steps are
the following. I shall [merely] enumerate them, leaving an
exhaustive study of them, and the details thereof, to an­
other occasion.
First, the machine must be acquired and used on the
widest possible scale in exploiting our resources, for the
machine is in the forefront of those factors which brought
about in the West the revolution that led to the modern

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 way of life. The introduction of it into our present life,
along with the concomitant result of industrializing this
life, would to a large extent guarantee the destruction of
tribalism, feudalism, and other characteristics that stand
in the way of nationalism.
Second, the state must be absolutely separated from
the religious organization, for nationalism is inconsistent
with literal theocracy. The states of the West have only
realized national strength to the extent that they have up­
rooted sectarianism and organized their life on the basis of
the latest achievements of open-minded, cumulative
thought.
Third, the mind must be systematized and organized
by training in the positive and empirical sciences, and the
nation’s cultural efforts must be directed toward the reali­
zation of the greatest possible degree of scientific organiza­
tion, keeping as far away as possible from benumbing
fancy and insubstantial romanticism, the lost guides that
lead even further astray. There is nothing like an organized
mind for uprooting falsehood and erecting the life of the
nation on secure foundations.
Fourth, generally speaking, the breast must be opened
wide to the acquisition of the highest mental and spiritual
values which human civilizations have achieved—values
whose validity for building a civilization has been confirm­
ed both intellectually and practically by the experience of
human striving. For the establishment of states depends
not only on the acquisition and efficient use of material
and mental technique, but also on steadfastness of moral
character, depth of belief, patience in adversity, and earnest
pursuit of the good. None of these will be achieved unless
the nation roots itself firmly in the fundamental values
which human striving has discovered throughout the ages.
These, in my opinion, are the fundamental character-

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istics of progressiveness which we seek and of the re- 49
volution which we so much desire in our present life. Some
may look askance at this opinion and think that in urging
the acquisition erf both the material and spiritual aspects
of modem civilization there is some departure from our
history and loss of our national traditions. The fact is that
some of our traditions are unsound, and these will be
demolished and routed by the forces of modem civiliza­
tion whether we desire it or not. Moreover, that which is
lasting and sound, and suitable to this (or any) time, can
only be discovered, separated from the temporary and the
worthless, and vitally and completely assimilated into our
present lives, by the action of that liberated, organized mind
which we must acquire from modem civilization and on
the foundation of which we must build our revolution.
In any case let the sceptics relax! For this progressive­
ness can lead us to no more evil situation than that in which
we are. In the face erf the shock sustained under the Zionist
blows, our existing position ended in a terrible material
and moral bankruptcy. In this struggle our traditions were
of absolutely no avail. As a matter of fact we found that
in spite of what our enemy had acquired and amassed
from modem civilization—or rather thanks to these ac­
quisitions—he surpassed us in intensity of belief, in unity
of loyalty, and in ability to hold cm to people, land, and
country just as he surpassed us in weapons of war and in
material techniques. We have, therefore, nothing to fear
from this national progressiveness. What we do have to
fear above all is shrinking from it, disdaining it, and suf­
focating ourselves in inflexible, inherited shells.
**»
There remains one more question: where is the road 50
to this all-inclusive revolution which, on the broadest scale
and to the greatest extent, will assure national progress?

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 There are some obvious roads which will lead to this
revolution and which will aid it. They include: the en­
couragement of local initiative in the exploitation of the
area’s resources, the propagation of knowledge and culture
by all [available] means, broadening the extent of political,
social, and intellectual liberties, and the reform of admin­
istrative procedures, as well as other courses of action lead­
ing toward development and progress.
However, these courses of action, despite their far-
reaching influence on the revolution to which we look for­
ward, are limited from two points of view. The first is
that they are slow to take effect and need extended effort
over a long period of time in order to bring about the fun­
damental change which is desired in our present situation.
But we are in a situation where we cannot allow time and
effort the liberty to do their work slowly and calmly. The
external and internal dangers which threaten our existence
do not permit us to wait for gradual evolution; instead,
they impose on us, if we want to be secure and to survive,
a plunge forward—a Ireal] revolution. Secondly, the afore­
mentioned courses of action need people who will discover,
strengthen, and universalize them; they need sincere, able
workers and creative leaders. These courses of action will
for their part help to bring forth such leaders. They in
turn, when found, will control and direct these policies with
a view to multiplying their results and strengthening their
effcct in bringing about the fundamental change which is
sought.
The factors making for progress, like all the forces of
life, are interrelated and interdependent. A cause pro­
duces a result, and this result in its turn may become a
cause and thus strengthen and support the first cause. It
is not reasonable to want to eliminate those evolutionary
factors which we have mentioned, such as propagating

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knowledge and so forth, but there is no doubt that the
point of departure for that change and revolution at which
we must today aim is no other than those who lead and
shape, the creative elite which can grasp these means and
push them hard along that single road which we seek.
This elite, on whose shoulders this most serious task
will be laid, or which rather will seize it by force, must
have already realized within itself the progress and the re­
volution which it SQeks within society. For he who is mo­
tived by impulse rather than by faith cannot inculcate faith
in the nation no m atter how loud his voice or how flowery
his speech. He who has not liberated himself but remains
a slave to impulses and ambitions cannot liberate any one
else no m atter how exalted his position or how great his
authority. He whose mind is obscured and in the corner
of whose brain the spider of fanaticism and reaction nests
will never bring light to his nation nor will he propagate
tolerance, co-operation, and unity in his society no m atter
what the color of the garment he wears.
Therefore, the initial condition for the success of re­
volutionary and progressive action is that its leaders and
masters be progressive in their souls and revolutionary
down to the marrow of their bones. Each of those who
apply themselves to this most serious task must measure
himself by this scale and evaluate himself on this basis.
The people in general--and the cultured and liberated in
particular—must test their leaders by this touchstone.
Those whose metal is pure will be worthy of leadership,
whereas those whose metal shows debasement will be con­
demned and rejected.
This elite must, as a prerequisite of its existence, or­
ganize and unify itself into well-knit parties and organiza­
tions. These must stand on a unified and pure doctrine and
must be bound by a strong, sound loyalty to which the

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elite will subjugate all its divergent tendencies and in which
it will willingly and freely believe. One view of the history
of the various awakenings in the world demonstrates most
clearly that a bringing together of the forces of these strug­
gling elites within party organizations and the like is the
greatest factor in creating the awakening and transforming
the situation.
As another prerequisite of its own existence this elite
must create true leadership and produce those individuals
who build states, create nations, and make history. These
are the ones who sow their seeds deep in the very life of
the people and whose sights are at the same time set on
what ought to be. They continue to work, with the support
of those who believe as they do and who associate them­
selves with them, until they or their successors complete
the fashioning of a new life and the rebuilding of a shat­
tered being. These are those who live every minute of their
lives under pressure from their consciences and in fear of
the judgment of history. These are the Sufis—Sufis not be- ’
cause they are ascetic and abstinent, but because they step
forward and accept [the challengel—who are not striv­
ing for personal satisfaction and happiness, but who will
receive both through the immersion of the self in the larger
entity of the fatherland. In a word these, and other refor­
mers like them, are they without whom a nation does not
exist, a civilization does not flourish, and human life has
no flavor or meaning.
•
**
An Arab national life, united and progressive, which
as we have said contains within itself the fundamental solu­
tion of the Palestine problem and in fact of the A rab pro­
blem in its entirety, will remain a dream and a potentiality
if it is not first realized in the souls of the nation’s strug­
gling elite—led by true leaders drawn from it—and in the

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system which this elite sets up, and in the parties and insti­
tutions which it establishes.
As one looks around himself, he finds that this point
of departure is still slight and that the struggling elite which
we seek is still small and scattered. It has not become strong
as a result of enlightened vision and fire-tested struggle.
The hostile forces of imperialism, and the ruling classes
and their temptations have collaborated to weaken and
scatter it. Some individuals within it have left an impres­
sion, but as an organized group it has had no clear or
palpable effect.
The young men of this nation look around in all di­
rections, but on the one hand they do not find their ideal
within the present leadership, nor on the other hand do the
struggles of the disjointed nationalist cliques satisfy their
eager ambition; thus despair overcomes them, and perplex­
ity overflows in their souls. They end either by doubt­
ing their own nation and despairing of the potentialities of
their people, in which case they follow a path leading to­
ward satisfaction of desire and yielding to temptation, or
else they fall prey to some destructive movement and find
their consolation in uproar and disturbance for its own
sake, regardless of result. No one can escape these dangers
and preserve his faith and belief except the few who have
strong spirits and sound sinews. But even these are in dan­
ger of dispersal and disintegration after the tragedy of
Palestine!
However, whatever the case may be and no matter
how weak and disunited our struggling elites may be at
this time, there is absolutely no doubt that they are the
point of departure, the beginning of the road, and the
source of hope.

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 This is the beginning of the road. Along this road the
spirit of resistance and of struggle in these struggling elite
groups must be sharpened, and their interaction with the
people and their perception of the people’s needs must be
continued. In addition, these elites must study thoroughly
the awakenings of other nations and thus acquire their
experience. They must harmonize themselves more tho­
roughly and strengthen their organization. They must fuse
themselves by the single loyalty and dedicate themselves
anew to to the prescribed goal—all this until, through
strength and unity, they bring about the hoped-for being
within themselves and thereby become worthy of bringing
it about in their society.
The fundamental transformation of our present situa­
tion, within which transformation lies the solution to the
Palestine problem and to the whole A rab problem, will be
determined by the extent to which our struggling elites hew
out this path for themselves and by the type of leadership
which is produced by them in this struggle. Perhaps these
elite groups will find that the first thing which this re­
volution will demand is a revolution within themselves, in
their mentality and in their modes of thought and action.
A revolution which has not first begun in the soul cannot
influence others or have any effect on society. Therefore,
let our struggling elite group look at themselves through
these glasses and judge themselves on this basis, for the si­
tuation is critical, the result will be decisive, and the forces
of life are merciless.
In the long run nothing worse than we deserve will
befall us, nor will we attain more than we deserve!

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 THE M E A N IN G OF TH E D ISASTER

An observer of the history of nations and of the evo­

lution of civilizations will note that their growth and pro­
gress are dependent on the difficulties and hardships which
surround them. It is not true, as some say, that civilizations
have first appeared in countries which had fertile land,
ample resources, and a good climate. Ease and comfort
have never constituted the way to improvement and pro­
gress. Civilizations have only arisen and developed when
difficulties and problems confronted them in either their
natural or human environments and thus forced them to
intellectual effort and to self-sacrifice for the purpose of
conquering these difficulties. Consequently, sacrifice and
effort were the cause of their progress and their salvation.

Nations are in this respect like individuals. All of us

know that a youth whose parents overly facilitate his edu­
cation and his work does not derive as much benefit or
achieve as much as does a poor, needy youth. Thus we see
that the generations of most families are as follows: a gen­
eration which through energy and toil amasses wealth, then
one which enjoys it to the full, and finally one which
squanders and wastes it.

Therefore, difficulties and hardships—even disasters—

are an incentive to individuals and groups and are one of
the causes of their awakening and their renaissance. But
they do not have this effect in all situations, for in some
cases they will cause destruction and collapse, even extinc­
tion.

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 A blow which will arouse a young man and which
will lead to a strong reaction on his part may destroy a
crumbling old man. A problem which will awaken an open
mind and increase its vitality and efficiency may paralyze
a loose, disjointed mind.
It is thus with nations, for one nation may conquer the
obstacles and obstructions of its natural environment where­
as another may be completely defeated by similar obsta­
cles. In fact the same nation may in one stage of its evolu­
tion be more capable of overcoming an obstacle than in
another stage. In some cases it may be able to meet at­
tacks and disasters and rise up more powerful and more
vital, while in other circumstances it may be defeated or
annihilated. History is full of examples of all these pheno­
mena.
Some believe that it was the attacks of the barbarians
which destroyed the Roman Empire. The fact is that
the Roman Empire had previously sustained more impor­
tant and more awesome blows and had endured and over­
come them, and, in fact, as a result of contending with
them, had acquired new strength and a more effective will.
But, by the time the barbarians came, it had disintegrated
internally and was unable to stand before their attacks. In
reality the disintegration itself was what invited the bar­
barians to the Empire and made them covetous of it.
Some of us still believe that the attacks of the Turks
and the Mongols are what destroyed the Abbasid Caliphate
and Arab power in general. But here also the fact is that
the Arabs had been defeated internally before the Mongols
defeated them and that, had those attacks been launched
against them when they were in the period of growth and
enlightenment, the Mongols would not have overcome
them. On the contrary the attacks might have revitalized
and re-energized them.

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 It is thus with other nations.
***
The disaster which afflicts us today is, therefore, the
touchstone of our present internal situation. If the factors
making for reaction and disintegration control us, this di­
saster will increase our weakness, disintegration, and frag­
mentation. However, if the factors making for progress
and growth have some strength (even if they are not in full
control), then the hard blow which we have had ought to
strengthen these factors and to impel them forward with
greater energy and with cumulative effect.
We speak a great deal about our present Arab awaken­
ing and we are proud of it. Today, however, this
awakening is being tested in the fire of experience. Either
it will emerge pure and unalloyed, or else weakness, cor­
ruption, and the predominance of veneer over inner core
and of noise over real action will appear.
Since these struggling, progressive forces are the ones
which will in the last analysis bear the burden of the
awakening, the present disaster—and every other blow
which we have sustained in the past or will sustain in the
future—is in reality a trial for them, and a test of their
strength, solidarity, ability to act, and aptitude for leader­
ship. N or will this test have any value or effect if one is
not aware of it, that is if he himself is not at the same time
both the tester and the tested.
Every A rab who considers himself in this category
must examine himself and analyze his value. Both the men
of thought and those who struggle in the various spheres
of action, and indeed all who are enthusiastic to serve their
country, must both individually and collectively examine
themselves in order to determine whether this disaster has
weakened and scattered them or whether it has increased
their will, their determination, and their unity.

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 Let them prove their character and their potentiality
for standing firm in the face of pressure and temptation! ]
Let them test their beliefs and their loyalty against
trials and calamities! |
Let them examine their progressiveness and liberalism
in order to find out how sharp and strong they are when
60 confronted by the pressure and attacks of reaction!
Let them measure the extent to which their eyes are
open to the light and their breasts are open to liberation in
all senses of the word!
Let them take stock of themselves and rise in revolt
against their own points of weakness and dispersion; then
let them preserve the elements of strength, and then
strengthen them even more!
If they do these things, they will emerge from the
disaster more resolute and more united, and their nation
will have hope in life and a provision for the future.
Then our substance will be purified in the fire of tri­
bulation and our being will be crystallized.
Then, and then only, will the disaster have a positive,
constructive meaning.
Then, and then only, will ease emerge from hardship,
resolution and purity from disturbance, and the seeds of
victory from disaster.

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U N IV E R S IT Y O F M IC H IG A N
 A SU P PLEM E N T O N THE PRINCIPLES
U N D E R L Y IN G O U R S T R U G G L E IN P A L E S T IN E

The reader will find in what follows, two chapters

written on two different occasions before the disaster took
place. In them I attempted to clarify the principles on
which our struggle in Palestine is based. Now that what
has happened has happened, it occurs to me that the reader
may feel that they are somewhat devoid of meaning and
may himself ask whether it is valid for us to discuss prin­
ciples since the march of events in Palestine has confirmed
the fact that force has the last word and that self-interest
holds complete sway over the policies of nations and
over their relations with each other.

Doubtless, he will say, “ I have faith in the lofty prin­

ciples on which our case rests but what good have they
done? Of what value to the Arabs was the validity and jus­
tice of these principles? What effect did they have on the
decisions which the highest international organizations
made, or on the policies which both great and small nations
follow in this case? Is the conscience of nations or of the
world at large moved by truth or principle when material
interest raises its head or influence makes itself felt or
force bares its teeth? Let us then turn away from fine
words and pretty thoughts and put all we have into ma­
terial preparations and into the mobilization of our strength
and resources in order to proceed with the struggle."

I am not unfamiliar with this appeal for arousing and

concentrating our strength. On the contrary, if there is, in
the heart of this book, a moral to the analysis of the causes

_ 1 _ ' ^ O r ig in a l fro m
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of our disaster and of the means of remedying them, it
lies exactly here. It lies in stirring up the spirit of struggle,
mobilizing our resources, and broadening the base of our
war effort. It lies in uprooting weakness and the causes of
disunity and in excising the cancer of corruption and reac­
tion from the body of the nation so that this body may
become safe and strong, may be fit for survival and growth,
and may conquer itself and thus be able to stand up to
others. It lies in an all-inclusive national revival and in
continuous, progressive self-renewal.
However, this appeal for strength and revival is not
inconsistent with seeking and following principles. In fact
the struggle will gain in strength if it is based on belief, if
it issues out of faith, and if it is tied to high principles and
fundamental values. History teaches us this fact and the
experience of peoples confirms it. Naked force has often
dominated in the life of nations—but only for a time. The
revolutions which have sought merely to seize power have
only led to disturbance and destruction. The true revolu­
tions—the revolutions which build and renew—have relied
on principles; they have been impelled by the fine ideals
and lofty examples which dominated the minds of the lea­
ders and which moved the souls erf the people.
Therefore, the fact that our crusade in Palestine ema­
nates from sound principles will not harm it. N or will the
national transformation which we seek be harmed if sound
belief calls it forth and if upright ideals and lofty, creative
examples chart its course. The most harmful thing of all
would be for us to believe that these ideals or examples
can protect our existence and insure our progress if we do
not at the same time tie our camel,1 buckle down to the
1. T h e a llu t io n in to ■ h a d ith (tr a d itio n ) o f th e P r o p h e t: A m an w h o h ad fr e q u e n tly
b e e n to ld th a t h e rnaat (ruat in G od e n te r e d a m oaq u e to p ray w ith o u t firat t ie in g
h it c a m e l. W h e n h e fin ish e d p r a y in g , h e w e n t o u t and fo u n d th a t th ia c a m e l waa
g o n e , w h e r e u p o n h e w e n t to t h e P r o p h e t and co m p la in e d . T h e P r o p h e t M id , “ T ie
y o u r c a m e l a nd ( t h e n ) truat in Cod** ( I 'q i l w a - 'l t a k i l ) . — R B ^

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task, and assemble for the morrow as much strength as we
are capable of.
This strength which we seek implies not only money,
weapons, and material means, but also depth of faith,
strength of loyalty, readiness to sacrifice, and steadfastness
in the face of discouragement and temptation. It involves
strength of character, steady nerves, and spiritual well­
being; and derives from common purpose, co-ordinated ac­
tion, and an outpouring of effort—all directed towards
achieving the goal.
This moral and spiritual strength which is necessary
in the struggle does not come to either an individual or to
a people if they have not clarified the principles on which
the struggle is centered, the aims which they are trying to
realize, and the value of these aims and principles in
the scale of historical experience and human progress.
Some indication of the corruption and perversion of
values in this age—a corruption which has become dis­
gracefully apparent during the course of the Palestine
problem—may be seen in the fact that a man whose func­
tion is the service of thought and the instilling of princi­
ples in the hearts of the young must resort to placing his
study of principles in an appendix rather than in an intro­
duction and must justify to himself and to his readers the
fact that he undertakes the discussion at all. But at least
let it be recorded that we have not forgotten these princi­
ples, and for our part let us continue to act in a way
which will confirm our deep adherence to them and which
will strengthen our spirits through the will and faith that
they inspire. Let us preserve them and rely and draw on
them as we gather strength for the present struggle and
for the national transformation which we await.
These considerations persuaded me to include the two
following chapters in this little study. I hope that the think­

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ing in them is in harmony with that of the whole and that
together they may contribute toward the fulfillment of some
of my hopes for that sound intellectual preparation and
fruitful action which will solve both our immediate and
our long-range problems.

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 TH E C O N F U C T B E T W E E N PRIN CIP LE A N D
FO RC E IN. TH E P A L E S T IN E PROBLEM*

When the newspaper, al-'Amal, first requested me to

write an article on the Palestine problem, I hesitated for
two reasons: first, because the large amount of material
written on the subject from various points of view, plus
the daily expressions of opinion by politicians, writers, and
news commentators in the press, magazines, and radio,
seemed to obviate further treatment; second, because this
problem had readied a point where the need was not for
talking, argument, and discussion, but rather for quick and
decisive action. However, I reconsidered and have accepted
the request in the hope that what I will say may be of
some value in illuminating the problem and in uncovering
its roots.
Since there are many aspects of this problem and since
its details have many ramifications, and since both these
broad aspects and the details had been subjected, as I have
said, to broad study and widespread commentary, I saw
that the best possible procedure was to break through to
the essence and to relate the branches to the roots, for
problems cannot be truly understood unless they are re­
lated to their roots and principles. One of the results of the
intense Zionist propaganda campaign has been to weave
around the core of the Palestine problem a web of mis­
leading views which have diverted world public opinion
from the reality of that core, with the result that it has
* P u b lis h e d in th e a p e e ia l C h ristm a s (1 9 4 7 ) n u m b er o f t h e B eir u t n ew a p a p er
a l - ‘A n a l .

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become difficult to get back to it and to face the reality
of it. Therefore, let us strip this problem of its external
appearances and penetrate to the inner essence. What do
we find?
We find that we have a problem in which principle
on the one hand is confronted by force and interest on the
other. Thus, the effect of this problem is not limited to
Arabs and Zionists. In fact it involves the whole world,
for it is a touchstone of the conscience of the world and
of the strength of international organization. Furthermore,
it is an indication of the direction in which human society
will move: towards justice and peace, or toward oppression
and continuous war.
In this question the principle is the right of every peo­
ple to the land on which they live and on which their fore­
fathers have lived for long centuries—to the land which
has been dyed red with their blood, and with whose soil
the sweat of their brow has been mixed. It is the right
to exploit the land’s resources and to establish therein any
political, social, or cultural system which they choose, pro­
vided that they do not infringe on the liberty and rights
of other peoples.
Mankind has struggled for centuries to have this right
acknowledged and in its name has spilled blood and made
other sacrifices. In World W ar I when the leaders of the
Allied nations proclaimed it, the world imagined that it
would be the basis of international organization after the
war, but it was not long before this vision cracked on the
rock of self-interest, and once more force and balance of
power began to steer the world. The recent war was simi­
lar: the proclamation of lofty principles in the Atlantic
Charter and elsewhere and a new international organiza­
tion, the United Nations, but, unfortunately, force, interest,
and balance of power are still the effective factors in inter­

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national politics.
If we review all the decisions and measures which have
been taken in connection with Palestine, we find that they
are contrary to the natural right of the Arabs and to the
fundamental principle of the right of self-determination for
which the nations proclaimed they were fighting and in the
name of which they sacrificed themselves to an extraordi­
nary degree.
The Balfour Declaration which Britain gave to the
Jews and which the Zionists take as the foundation stone
of their legal claims, was completely contrary to the
aforementioned principle. The British had no right from
any point of view to dispose of a land which was not their
own or to determine the future of any people other than
their own. I do not here refer to the contradiction between
the Balfour Declaration and the pledges which the British
made to the Arabs, despite its importance, for I am limit­
ing my inquiry to the principle involved, regardless of po­
litical or other points of view, which also favor the Arabs.
Some may say that the British acquired the right to
dispose of Palestine because they conquered it and obtain­
ed it as spoils of war from the Ottoman Turks. One re­
futation of this argument is that the British did not con­
quer it alone but in partnership with the Arabs, who allied
themselves with them and who rose up in their well-known
revolt in order to liberate their country. However, the more
important refutation from the point of view of principle
is that the right of conquest can no longer be considered a
basis for world organization. If it can be, we have turned
civilization back to the Dark Ages and have trampled un­
der foot the fundamental principle of nationalism, namely,
the right of every people to its land and to the determina­
tion of its own destiny.
Others may say that the Balfour Declaration acquired

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an international legal character when the League of N a­
tions endorsed it and made it one of the bases of the Brit­
ish mandate for Palestine. The answer to this claim is that
what is built on a false foundation will continue to be false
even if the whole world endorses it. Furthermore, the man­
date over Palestine is itself contrary to the general prin­
ciple of mandates enunciated in Article twenty-two of the
Covenant of the League of Nations, for in paragraph
four of this Article there appears the following:
Certain communities formerly belonging to the T ur­
kish Empire have reached a stage of development where
their existence as independent nations can be provision­
ally recognized subject to the rendering of administrative
advice and assistance by a Mandatory until such time as
they are able to stand alone. The wishes of these com ­
munities must be a principal consideration in the selec­
tion of the Mandatory.
In the light of this statement, the inclusion of the Bal­
four Declaration in the text of the mandate for Palestine
was not only a transgression of the natural rights erf the
Arabs, but also contrary to the fundamental principle re­
levant to all mandates for territories which had been under
Ottoman control and whose independence was provisional­
ly recognized. For beyond any doubt the policy of im­
migration and of acting to build a national Jewish home
impaired this previously recognized independence, not to
mention the fact that the wishes of the people of Palestine
were never considered either as to the mandate itself or as
to the choice of the mandatory power.
Palestine was thus ruled for a period of twenty-five
years by a regime based neither on natural nor legal prin­
ciples, but instead on force and self-interest. Through this
force the sovereignty of the Arabs was violated instead of
being preserved, and their existence in their own land was

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encompassed by danger and threatened with extinction.
Now the United Nations has committed the same
crime and sacrificed principle on the altar of interest. Its
decision on partition transgresses the right of the people
of Palestine to determine their future in accordance with
well-established democratic processes and is also contrary
to both the letter and the spirit of the United Nations
Charter itself. Even if we assume that the mandate for
Palestine was based on a legal foundation—and we have
demonstrated that it was not—we find no article in the
twelfth chapter of the Charter (which deals with mandated
territories) that gives the United Nations the right to parti­
tion the country or to dispose of it as it wants. There is
one single inescapable principle: to aid this country to at­
tain its independence and to determine its own fate.
Thus the decision of the United Nations—like the
mandate—rests on neither a moral nor a legal foundation.
The Arab delegations came forward with the proposal of
submitting this question to the International Court of Jus­
tice so that it might give its opinion on the competence of
the United Nations to decide on partition. Even this pro­
posal was turned down—a fact showing that the United
Nations, under the pressure of various forces and interests,
was not in this case prepared to listen to the voice of the
highest legal authority in the world.
We deduce from all that has preceded that the strug­
gle against Zionism and against the establishment of a Je­
wish state in Palestine is not, from the Arab point of view,
merely a national struggle, but a struggle for the sake of
a lofty human ideal—a struggle between right and might,
between principle and interest.
***
Some may ask: “do the Zionists not have principles on

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71 which they build their movement and in which they
clothe their propaganda and through which they aoquire
sympathy and support?”
They do indeed flaunt many “principles,” but none
of them will stand before fact and evidence.
The Zionists claim that Palestine is the national home
of the Jews because they inhabited it for many generations
in the past, that they were then driven from it, and that
they now have the right to return to it. The fact is that
the Jews infiltrated Palestine in ancient time as other
Semitic tribes infiltrated the countries of the Fertile Cres­
cent, but they established a unified kingdom in it only
during the period of David and Solomon (1017-937 B.C.),
and this kingdom lasted only for a limited period. Even
during that short period their rule did not include all of
Palestine, for the Philistines and others continued to have
power and influence in the country. Then the Jewish king­
dom was divided into two states—north and south. The
first fell in 722 B.C., and the second in 586 B.C. During
the following centuries they were scattered, and although
they tried to rebuild their political life, they failed time
after time until finally, during the first two Christian cen­
turies, they were completely dispersed. One thing which
shows that their relationship with Palestine was transitory
is that the name by which the country has been known
throughout history is not derived from them but from their
bitterest enemies, the Philistines. Further it is important to
note that even at the peak of their power they did not in­
habit the regions which they now occupy and which were
72 given them by the partition—that is, the plains and the
coast. These were the home of the Philistines and the cen­
ter of their power.
In addition, the Zionist Jews who are now immigrat­
ing to Palestine bear absolutely no relation to the Semitic

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Jews. In fact they are from another stock which is com­
pletely different from the Semitic stock. Historians affirm
that the great majority of the eastern European Jews—and
they are the ones who are now pouring into Palestine—
trace their origins back to the Khazar tribes who embraced
Judaism in the eighth Christian century and who later
spread throughout eastern and central Europe. Thus their
only bond with the Jews who settled in Palestine in ancient
times is religion, which is not a valid basis on which to
build nationalism or to found a state.
On the other hand, the Arabs in Palestine represent
not only the tribes which migrated from the [Arabianl
Peninsula in the seventh century—those tribes were in fact
small in number—but all the inhabitants, Semites and
others (Philistines, Canaanites, Amorites, Aramaeans, etc.)
who have come to Palestine one after another since the
dawn of history and who were Arabicized in the seventh
century and thereafter. Thus they are the original inhabi­
tants of the country, and the sojourn of the Jews in their
country was only transitory and temporary when compared
with the long history of the country.
Even if we grant the Jews an historical right in the
past, what right does that confer on them in the present?
If historical relationship is a valid basis for claiming title
to a country, the Arabs would today have the right to
claim Spain, the Italians would have the right to claim
England, and all the population of the United States would
have to leave it and return it to the American Indians.
From whatever point of view we examine the historic­
al principle to which the Zionists appeal, we find that their
case has no foundation and cannot be proved.
The Zionist Jews claim that Palestine is their land,
that God promised it to them, and that the prophets pro­
phesied their certain return to it. Some Christians have

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been taken in by these claims in view of certain prophecies
which appear in some books of the Bible. But these Chris­
tians forget that the Jews refused the Christian message
in its entirety and that they, by surrendering to this Jewish
claim, surrender the cradle of their religion to a group
which has refused it and has fought it throughout the cen­
turies. Further, how can we accept the view that any one
people is the special people of God, that there- is a co­
venant between God and them, or that God has singled
them out for a particular relationship or distinction. The
idea of a “chosen people” is closer to that of Nazism than
to any other idea, and (in the end] it will fall and collapse
just as Nazism did.
Let us note that the Zionist state which is now being
built in Palestine is as far as possible from religion, for it is
a secular state in every sense erf the world. It uses the prin­
ciple of religion, among other things, merely as a vehicle
for propaganda, for in fact the state centers on such basic
concepts of the secular state as land, industry, and culture.
In fact its fundamental bases are conquest and seizure by
force—and how remote are they from true religion!
The Zionists attempt to support their case for the
establishment of a state in Palestine on the persecution and
agonies which the Jews have suffered throughout the ages,
especially under Nazi rule and during the recent war. They
point to the tens of thousands who still live in refugee
camps in Germany and elsewhere.
If we assume for the sake of argument that the Jews
had no hand in bringing about the persecution which has
befallen them, that they in no way contributed to it, and
that it was all the fault of other peoples, who then is res­
ponsible for it and at whose expense should it be rectified?
Is it proper that the Arabs be asked to pay the price of
the persecution and suffering which the peoples of Europe

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have inflicted on the Jews? Is it just to ask the Arabs to
give up their land and their sovereignty in order to atone
for the crimes and tyranny of the Western peoples? Is it
right that this heavy burden should be imposed chi the
Arabs and that they should pay this penalty despite the
fact that throughout the ages they have been tolerant to­
ward the Jews, and have granted them freedom and al­
lowed them to flourish to a greater degree than has any
other people in the past?
The problem of the persecution of Jews is a world­
wide problem and will only be solved by the spread of a
spirit of religious and social tolerance throughout the whole
world; but responsibility for the refugees and displaced
persons falls on the shoulders of those peoples who per­
secuted them. And since Nazism has disappeared from
Europe, what prevents their return to their homelands
and the facilitation of their means of livelihood therein?
The truth is that had the Zionists of America spent, on
ways of assisting and settling them, a part of what they
are spending on Zionist propaganda and weapons, the
question of Jewish refugees and displaced persons would
have been settled.
Finally, the establishment of a Jewish state in Pal­
estine will not in fact lessen the persecution of Jews in the
West nor solve their problem. Indeed, the problem may
become more complicated. Fanaticism and persecution may
increase and may lead the peoples of the West, whenever
some misfortune overtakes them and they feel that the Jews
have had a hand in it, to blame the Jews and call upon
them to get out of the country and emigrate to Palestine.
Intelligent Jews throughout the world await this reaction
with great concern, but they cannot stand up and say so
in the face of the tightly-knit, militant Zionist minority.
The Zionists say that they did not take the land of

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Palestine by force, but purchased it with their own money
and that for this reason they have the right to establish a
state on it. Some are taken in by this claim, forgetting that
for the last twenty-five years Palestine has been under a
type of rule which facilitated this sale of land instead of
limiting or preventing it. Hence lone realizes] the value of
independence and the rise of a government which will safe­
guard the sovereignty of the people and protect their herit­
age. If foreign groups were to descend on Lebanon or any
other independent country, and by exorbitant prices began
enticing its people, began buying their property, obtaining
concessions, and forming companies in order to exploit
the resources of the country, and began introducing legis­
lation which would reserve those properties and resources
to them exclusively and which would prevent their return
to their rightful owners in any way, shape, or form—would
the government stand with both hands tied behind its back?
Would it not take the measures necessary to defend the
people’s heritage and the national resources? The manda­
tory power did not undertake this defense; on the contrary
the economic situation which it established in Palestine and
the exorbitant taxes which it imposed in order to prop up
an artificial system, instead of preserving and protecting
the national heritage, encouraged the resulting losses of it.
This does not mean that the Arabs had absolutely no res­
ponsibility for what happened in this connection, but it does
mean that the responsibility falls in the first place on those
who deprived the Arabs of their independence, who placed
their destiny in the hands of a government foreign to them,
and who brought about in their country a situation openly
aimed at destroying their being and erecting another being
on its debris. In addition, the mere purchase and possession
of land in a geographically unified country is not a jus­
tifiable basis for destroying this geographical unity and
erecting a foreign state in it. In fact, this unity should be

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preserved, and on the basis of it the political structure
should be established by recognized democratic means.
*
**
These are some of the “principles” on which Zionists
base their propaganda. These “principles,” and others like
them which we cannot treat in this article, do not, as we
have seen, rest on a valid or strong foundation. All of them
collapse and fall apart before one clear truth which cannot
be refuted, namely, the right of the Arabs to determine
their own future and to preserve the natural legacy which
they inherted from their forefathers.
What then forbids them this right?
Power and self-interest.
The power is the world-wide power of the Jews—po­
litically, financially, and culturally.
This power became clear during the first World War.
It extracted the Balfour Declaration from the British gov­
ernment, then imposed on the members of the League of
Nations the inclusion of this declaration in the text of the
mandate, and continued under the mandate to act in Eng­
land and America so as to secure continued support for
its aggressive policy, despite the awakening of British poli­
ticians to its dangers and despite successive Arab revolts.
In recent years this power has been centered in the United
States. No one who has not stayed in that country and
studied its conditions can truly estimate the extent of this
power or visualize the aweful danger of it. Many American
industries and financial institutions are in the hands of
Jews, not to mention the press, radio, cinema, and other
media of propaganda, or Jewish voters in the states of New
York, Illinois, Ohio, and others which are important in
presidential elections, especially in these days when the
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 and both parties are trying to acquire votes from any quar­
ter possible.
78 To estimate the danger of Jewish power in the United
States, and consequently in all the world, it suffices to
know that the Jews of the United States collected one hun­
dred and five million dollars in 1946 and one hundred and
seventy million this year, and that they are now making
provisions to collect three hundred and fifty million—all
for the support of the new Jewish state.
This is the power: the power of the Jews. Let us turn
to the self-interest. There are, in the first place, the d o ­
mestic interests of American parties, which, as well-in­
formed Americans know, are contrary to the higher in­
terests of America as a state with important stakes in the
Arab world. Then there is Russia’s interest in finding for
itself an opening in the Near East behind the strong points
with which the Anglo-Saxon states are building in her face
in Greece, Turkey, and Iran. Thus if the situation in Pal­
estine is disturbed and the Security Council intervenes ei­
ther as a body or by means of some of its members, the
Soviets will have an opportunity to penetrate into this vital
region of the world behind the Anglo-Saxons’ first line of
defense.
These two interests, the American internal and the
Soviet external, coincided with other imperialistic interests
and with the world-wide power of the Jews and led to the
partition decision and to the sacrifice of right and princi­
ple.
*
**
Thus I return at the end of this article to what I stated
in the beginning, namely that the essence of the Palestine
79 problem is a struggle between right and principle on
the one hand and between power and interest on the other.

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 This struggle will be long and hard, and the greatest
effort and most far-reaching sacrifice will be demanded of
the Arabs. If they do not meet the demands and make the
sacrifice whatever the cost, they will expose themselves to
an awesome danger which will threaten them wherever they
may be.
i Jewish state is actually established in Palestine
itemationally secured through recognition by the
Nations and by individual states, it will not be long
las the largest air force in the Near East and, God
merchant marine and a fleet which will dominate
nres in their entirety as well as an organized, me-
army supported by abundant materiel and the
lish modem weapons. This state will open its doors
ands of immigrants who will pour into it from
ind to millions of dollars which will flood it from
rairaiva. Thus it will become a human and financial force
which will be difficult to contain in its own area and which
will overflow into the remainder of the Arab countries by
every possible means and thus constitute, during a situa­
tion of world disturbance, a great danger for those coun­
tries) This danger is aggravated by the fact that it occupies
TTEecoast and the sea passages and is established in a vital
between the Arab countries. For Palestine is the bridge
reen these countries, and if a foreign power conquers
stations between them will be disrupted, and the chain
o-operation and unity will be broken.
The struggle of the Arabs will be prolonged and hard.
It should strengthen them in this struggle to know that they
are repelling one of the most awesome and serious dangers
that they have confronted throughout their history, a
danger which threatens the essence of their being in their
various countries, a danger which, wherever they are, ex­
poses their natural right and acquired independence to col-

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lapse and extinction. It should also strengthen them to
know that they are on the side of right and principle, fac­
ing force and self-interest in their most terrible forms.
Might may conquer right, and self-interest may conquer
principles, temporarily, but they will not conquer in the
end. Blessed be the giving, and blessed the sacrifices in this
noble, holy crusade!

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 W H Y DO W E S T R U G G L E IN PALESTINE?*

Why do we struggle in Palestine? Why do the Arab

peoples throw thousands of their young men into the thick
of the fight? Why are the voices of Arab representatives
raised in the United Nations and other international meet­
ings in defense of the position of their governments and
their peoples? What is the cause for the sake of which we
have roused ourselves to struggle with heart, hand, and
tongue—even with life itself?
The first answer to this question is that we struggle
in order to repel attack and aggression and to defend our
existence from the peril of injustice and imperialism. In fact
the Arab nation throughout its long history has never
been faced by a more serious danger than that to which
it is today exposed. The forces which the Zionists control
in all parts of the world can, if they are permitted to take
root in Palestine, threaten the independence of all the Arab
lands and form a continuing and frightening danger to
their life. The facilities that the Zionist forces have for
growth and expansion will place the A rab world forever
at their mercy and will paralyze its vitality and deter its
progress and evolution in the ladders of advancement and
civilization—that is, if this Arab world is permitted to exist
at all.
In the first place, therefore, we struggle simply to de­
fend ourselves against a treacherous aggression and to pro­
tect our very existence. If smooth talkers in the United
Nations or elsewhere claim that we have thereby commit­
• B ro a d c a st o v e r th e L e b a n e s e B ro a d ca a tin g S t a tio n o n th e e v e n in g o f M ay 3 1 , 1948.

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 ted an aggressive action, they merely turn events upside
down, commit a crime in the sight of truth and history,
and register themselves and their allies as the aggressors!
In the sight of history no distinction will be made as to
whether these smooth talkers represented large or small
states, for the curse shall follow them whoever they may
be, and one day they shall reap the rewards of their ac­
tions because inevitably evil turns on him who commits
it and crime returns to envelop the criminal.
A
Nevertheless, our present struggle has a more impor­
tant meaning than the one which we have mentioned, a
significance which transcends our borders and extends
throughout the world and which stretches from the pre­
sent to the horizons of the future; for we are defending
not only our own rights but also principles which are of
importance to every people on earth, and which, when
fairly judged take on a world-wide coloring and a historic­
al moral. Thus our struggle is linked to the centuries-old
human struggle for lasting values and basic human liber­
ties.
We Arabs have the right, or better the duty, to lay
bare this widest and deepest of the meanings of our strug­
gle in order to clarify for ourselves and explain to the
world the importance of this struggle and in order to put
ourselves where we belong, in the procession of those who
have fought for right and principle. No other procession
gives to human life its full meaning and creates a positive
effect on history, for true history consists only of those
human values which have been acquired, moral attitudes
which have been adopted, and principles which have been
elucidated and verified.
The first principle on which our struggle is centered is
the right of every people to the land which it inherited

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from its fathers and grandfathers and on which it lives.
This right entitles a people to exploit the land and to es­
tablish in it any system which it chooses, on condition that
that system does not encroach on the rights of others.
Since the dawn of time man has been trying to achieve
this right of self-determination—a purely human principle.
Leaders and reformers continue to appeal for its [adop­
tion], and the common people continue to sacrifice both
young and old for its sake. If the Arabs today stand up
and fight for this principle against Zionist aggression, and
if they continue to rise against every maneuvre and at­
tempt, either present or future, to destroy it or secretly
to aggress in its name and under its banner, .they not only
act so as to preserve their own existence, but they also
buttress one of the pillars of secure human life and of
true world progress.
The great powers, whose leaders still flaunt the prin­
ciple of self-determination whenever world conditions reach
a crisis and whenever they need the support of small na­
tions, must today clarify their attitude regarding this prin­
ciple in the present struggle in Palestine, where it is clearly
opposed by the power of wealth, politics, and influence.
One of the leaders of these great nations said during the
last war, “Peace is one and indivisible.” Exactly! In the
same way right, freedom, and principle are also indivisible
unities which have no meaning if they apply to one coun­
try or one area to the exclusion of others, or if they are
merely hypocritically proclaimed without finding their way
into the heart of thought and action. Whatever may be the
position of other nations, the Arabs know where they stand
in this struggle, and their victory will be a victory for one
of society’s fundamental principles, and this to the advant­
age of humanity in its entirety.
*
**

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 The second principle on which the Arab crusade in
Palestine is based is religious toleration. The Zionists have
deceitfully pictured to the world that the establishment of
a Zionist state in Palestine is a solution for the world-wide
Jewish problem. In fact, the so-called state will not solve
this great problem, but rather make it more complicated
and incite nations to doubt the loyalty of their Jewish
citizens, to consider them foreigners and to put pressure
on them in all ways to emigrate to that deceptive and self-
deceiving state. Thus the position of the Jews will con-
85 tinue to oscillate between two loyalties. They will con­
tinue to be looked at askance and in fact their position
will deteriorate, for they have undertaken something com­
pletely erroneous. They have tried to build nationalism on
the basis of religion in opposition to what history, political
theory, and sociology have established.
No! The worldwide Jewish problem will only be solv­
ed on the basis of the spread of religious tolerance and of
the strengthening of the principles of human dignity
through political, economic, and social effort. Further, it
is linked to the popular struggle against external and in­
ternal imperialism and against any exclusive claim that
might diminish either group or individual freedom. This
is a world-wide problem, the overcoming of which depends
on the readiness of the Jews themselves for assimilation
with the rest of mankind and on the victory of the prin­
ciples of freedom of thought and belief—principles which
are relevant not only for Jews, but for every individual,
group, and religious community.
In their defense of religious toleration and freedom of
belief the Arabs are only following their tradition. For
throughout history they have extended to the Jews a de­
gree of freedom not given them by any other people. Dur­
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reached a degree of power and importance which they did
not attain in any other state. The Arabs continue to pro­
claim their willingness to live with the Jews under the shel­
ter of a common democratic rule in which the Jews will
dispose of all rights to which their numbers entitle them
and will enjoy the same rights and duties as the Arabs, a
desideratum which in fact is still not a reality in many
nations of the world.
By bringing about democratic freedoms in this way
the Jewish problem will be solved. By focusing atten­
tion on the real solution of the problem and by removing
the veil of hypocrisy from those nations that profess to
defend the Jews but at the same time close their doors to
them, the Arabs are, in this struggle to prevent the estab­
lishment of a Zionist state in Palestine, serving these same
freedoms. The Arab crusade in Palestine is against this
and similar unrighteousness, a struggle to solve the reli­
gious problem on a sound basis and to realize those fun­
damental liberties which the defenders of Zionism are so
very far from realizing. In fact by their defense of Zionism
the latter are, either from ignorance or by design, acting
to weaken and destroy those liberties.
*
**
The final and most comprehensive principle on which
the Arab crusade in Palestine is centered is the victory of
principle over interest in world organization. The world
is today witnessing the worst comedy that history has seen.
It sees an international organization, which includes most
of the nations of the world, impotent to solve a single in­
ternational problem. The United Nations, with its General
Assembly, Security Council, and Trusteeship Council, is
still unable to solve a single one of the disputes which have
split humanity and which threaten a horrible new war: in
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and Germany, in fact in every sensitive spot on earth. This
is mainly because the member nations continue to place
interest above principle, and the great powers in particular
continue to be directed by a passion for domination and
monopoly, not by any desire to realize sound values in the
life of peoples and in their relationships one with the other.
Standing in the face of interest and political greed, the
Arabs in their present defensive effort serve not only them­
selves but the whole world and contribute their share to­
wards awakening mankind to its only safe road, the road
of firm and fundamental principles, not of fluctuating in­
terests and oppressive greed.
***
No country in the world enjoys the same universal
value as Palestine. Palestine did not acquire its position in
history through its natural characteristics or its material
resources, but rather because of the lofty human values and
noble principles which have emanated from it and illum­
inated the whole world. The Arab crusade today takes on
its true meaning only in this framework and in the light of
this truth. It is indeed an Arab crusade carried on to guard
the independence and existence of the Arabs, but in ad­
dition—in fact I will say first and foremost— it is a hu­
man crusade of universal significance which will, I hope,
continue to further the positive tradition of Palestine by
imparting sound values and by defending principles, free­
doms, and basic human responsibilities.

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