Palestine: A Modern History (ص 28)

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Palestine: A Modern History (ص 28)

المحتوى

58 Polarisation: The Military Administration 1917-1920
Moslems and Christians. Is it for the language? Then it is fairly well
known that the language of this country is pure Arab.“
The Zionist claim to Palestine, the Comntittee argued, ‘suggests the
impracticable necessity of drawing up quite a new map of the world’. In
any case the Palestinian Arabs
can never support to be subjugated, on the contrary try to hold
fast in our National right up to death:
We, Arabs, are’ not hostile to the others, and never entertain the
least idea to expel other elements from our country wherein we
cannot agree to see that our guests the Jews are going to frustrate us
from political rights as we are unwilling to consider as native the
people who come from outside our country.
‘We refuse to see millions of Jews coming into Palestine, for they
will engross and monopolise all the product of Palestine, as it should
“not be forgotten to state the Jew likes only the Jew, help the Jew
and nobody #lse.
Undoubtedly, such deeds will be the cause of successive revolu-
' ‘tiorisy which will ruin the country. and be the misfortune’ of the
-inhabitants. '
. «. Then the Jews.be informed, that Palestine belongs to us, and
will never part with it; they..must also know that we are born in
Palestine wherein we hope to die and be buried in its holy grounds.
t
The memorandum was conciliatory towards Britain’4nd uncompro-
mising, towards the Zionists in conformity with .the general policy
adopted by. the Arab political notability in Palestine. However, it was
not unlikely that the members-of the Jaffa Muslim-Christian Committee
were more friendly to the British than other Committees,in view of
their trading and citrus interests which depended to a great extent on
the goodwill. and policies of the,,Government. Another factor in ,the
(Jaffa) Commijttee’s: attitude towards the British Government may -be
attributed, to,the relatively friendly disposition of Colonel Hubbard, the
Military Governor, who was in favour of a more even-handed British
policy in Palestine. “
Following a visit to Jerusalem, Sykes observed that there were, two
Arab complaints: mo
(1) The Zionists are aggressive, demonstrative and provocative, and
threaten them with a Jewish Government. (II) The British Home
Polarisation: The Military Administration 1917-1920 59
Government is acting in such a way that the Palestinian Arabs will
sooner or later become subject to Jewish rule.
However, Sykes detected
a feeling among the Arabs that the declaration really does not
amount to much and that the Arabs have only to agitate in order to
get it shelved or rendered nugatory.
x
NeVertheless, Sykes genuinely feared ‘that non-Jews may think best
demonstration is violent outbreak’.
Contemplated violence was not the only problem which faced
British officials in Palestine. To the embarrassment of the -British
authorities the Palestinians raised the. issue of the unity of Syria and
Palestine. During the second-half of November, eighteen scopies of the
Anglo-French Declaration of'7 November were distributed. On the
following day a deputation of Muslims and Christians called on Storrs.
After offering to the Allies their sincere thanks for the Declaration,
they asked Storrs formally: A
(a) Whether Palestine formed. or, did not form part of Syria.
‘ (b) Whether, if so, Palestine came under the categoty of those
inhabitants of the -libérated countries who were invited to chooége
+ their own futures; and 1
(c)If, not, why the notices had: been sent to them at all.®
»
In his report of the incident, Storr also spoke about the solidarity
between fhe Muslim and Christian Arabs and their wnited stand regard-
ing ‘their acceptance of the Anglo-French Declaration and their desire
for a Sherifian, Goyernment’.®® Days later Storrs reported that, in
addition to the formation of a Christian-Muslim Arab Committee in
Jerusalem,
daily meetings were reported to me at the Muktataf al-Drus School,
the name of which has now been changed to the Arab Club. Two
main decisions were taken at these meetings (1) that a signed petition
should be,sent to the French Commissariat, begging that Palestine
might be formally included in Syria, and’(2) that on Friday last the
22nd the name of the Sherif should be pronounced as Caliph.

تاريخ

1978

المنشئ

Abdul-Wahhab Kayyali

مجموعات العناصر

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