Fawzi al-Qawuqji

Fawzi al-Qawuqji (1890 - Beirut, 1977, _ar. فوزي القاوقجي) was the field commander of the Arab Liberation Army during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and a rival of the principle Palestinian leader, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini.

His tactics during the 1948 war were aggressive, but entirely ineffective, and he failed to win a single important battle against Jewish forces often far outnumbered by his own men. His forces were driven out of Palestine and into Lebanon following the disastrous Battle of Sa'sa' on October 30.

An Arab nationalist, Qawuqji served as an officer in the Ottoman army during World War I. Qawuqji also fought against the French in Syria during the rebellion of 1925–1927 and against the British in Mandatory Palestine during the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. He fought in Iraq during the Rashid Ali coup of 1941 and was subsequently exiled in Nazi Germany for the remainder of World War II. He served as a Wehrmacht agent in Palestine and held a title of an officer of the Wehrmacht.

References