Nashashibi

Nashashibi is the name of a prominent Palestinian family based in Jerusalem. Many of its members held senior positions in the government of Jerusalem. Raghib al-Nashashibi was Mayor of Jerusalem (1920-1934).

History

The Nashashibis led by Naser al-Din al-Nashashibi migrated to Jerusalem in 1469 AD. He was chosen to guard the al-Aqsa Mosque and Ibrahimiya Mosque in Hebron. From that period the family occupied jobs such as, merchants and local government officials until the establishment of Israel. They fought against Ottoman rule in the early 1900s during the Arab Revolt. They contributed to the Arab Higher Committee and were political rivals of the al-Husayni clan. Currently some members hold positions in the Palestine National Council and the Palestine Liberation Organization.^[1]

British Mandate (1920-1948)

Nashashibi family, 1929. Raghib al-Nashashibi standing above the bride

The Nashashibi family had particularly strong influence in Palestine during the British Mandate Period from 1920 until 1948. Throughout this period, they competed with the Husaynis, another prominent Arab family, for dominance of the Arab political scene in Palestine. The views of these two families largely shaped the divergent political stances of all Arabs in Palestine at the time. The Nashashibi family was led by Raghib Nashashibi, who was appointed Mayor of Jerusalem in 1920. Raghib was an influential political figure throughout the British Mandate, and helped form the Palestinian Arab National Party in 1928 and the National Defense Party in 1934 ^[2]. He also served as a minister in the Jordanian government, governor of the West Bank, member of the Jordanian Senate, and the first military governor in Palestine.

Views

The Nashashibi family was considered to be politically moderate when compared to the more militant views of the Husayni family. The Nashashibis favored political, rather than violent, opposition to the British mandate and Zionism ^[3]. They were also willing to compromise in some areas that many Palestinians were not. For example, the Nashashibi family favored the partition proposed by Britain in 1937 and reservedly accepted the 1939 White Paper, though they backtracked when attacked by political opponents. Similarly, the Nashashibi also were in favor of Arab participation in the Legislative Council proposed by the British mandate, which would feature representatives of the various religious groups in Palestine at the time. Generally, the Nashashibi family and their political following advocated compromise with Zionists and the British Mandate. This fell in stark contrast to the views of the Husaynis, who advocated a total rejection of the Balfour Declaration policy ^[4]. The Palestine Arab Party, formed in 1935 by the Husayni’s in response to the formation of Nashashibi’s National Defense Party, believed in the maximalist dissolution of the Jewish National Home and creation of a solely Arab government^[5]. The Nashashibis, however, felt that Arabs were most likely to achieve their political goals by working within the Mandate system, rather than fighting against it ^[6].

Husayni-Nashashibi Rivalry

Throughout the British Mandate period, the Husaynis and Nashashibis were the two most powerful families in Arab Palestine and they constantly competed for power while under British rule. While the two families did not differ on their long-term goals (stopping the influx of European Jews and preserving the Arab Palestinian state), they disagreed on the best way to achieve those goals. The Husayni family rejected the British mandate and Zionism as a whole, while the Nashashibis felt that the best recourse was through political compromise. Politics as a whole in Palestine largely diverged along the rift created by these two families. This produced a state of factionalism among Arabs that often crippled them in fighting the forces of Zionism. For example, Zionists often paid the Nashashibis to oppose the more extreme Husaynis’ policy ^[7]. Additionally, partisan bickering often resulted in one family blocking the policies of another family that genuinely may have been in the national interest. Unfortunately for Arabs, their ability to effectively negotiate was often hindered by their inability to present a united front on the issue of Zionism.

Arab Revolt (1937 – 1939)

The Arab Revolt was in some ways a rejection of the moderate policies of the Nashashibi family. Sparked by opposition to Jewish immigration, which had greatly increased due to anti-Semitism in Europe, the Arab revolt began to target members of the Nashashibi family as well as the Jewish community and British administrators. As a result, Raghib Nashashibi was forced to flee to Egypt after several assassination attempts ordered by the mufti, Hajj Amin al-Husayni ^[8]. Raghib’s nephew, Fakhri Nashashibi helped organized counterrevolutionary forces known as “peace bands” to fight rebels and give information to the British and Zionists.

Ties to Jordan

In 1947, the UN voted in favor of the partition of Palestine, but the creation of a Jewish State was not yet set. A conflict was to erupt that would decide that the Zionists, with their superior leadership, training and arms received in WWII, would gain the partition and independent state they desired in their Jewish National Home ^[9]. However, during the time before the proclamation of the Jewish State, other Arab states staked their interest in helping the Palestinian Arabs. Egypt came to the aid of the Husayni mufti, and the Nashashibi’s supported King Abdullah of Jordan. Despite outside aid, events such as that at Dayr Yasin caused an Arab exodus, and the situation turned in favor of the Zionists, thus leading to the proclamation of Israel as a state by David Ben-Gurion in 1948.

Following Israeli statehood in May 1948, the mufti attempted to form from Egypt an Arab government of all of Palestine in Gaza, but Abdullah of Jordan prevented this and annexed the larger remaining Arab area of Palestine (now called the West Bank) to Transjordan, forming the Kingdom of Jordan. Raghib al-Nashashibi was then appointed the first military governor of Palestine, which along with the backing by Arab states (other than Egypt) signaled the defeat of the mufti ^[10].

Notable members

• Mufid Nashashibi
• Rosalind Nashashibi
• Raghib al-Nashashibi
• Sharif Hikmat Nashashibi

References

1. ^ The Nashashibis
2. ^ http://www.answers.com/topic/nashashibi-family
3. ^ [Smith, Charles. Palestine and Arab-Israeli Conflict. Sixth Edition. 2007. p.111-225.]
4. ^ http://www.answers.com/topic/nashashibi-family
5. ^ [Smith, Charles. Palestine and Arab-Israeli Conflict. Sixth Edition. 2007.]
6. ^ Palestinian Arab and Jewish Leadership in the Mandate Period
7. ^ Palestinian Arab Violence Under the British Mandate
8. ^ [Smith, Charles. Palestine and Arab-Israeli Conflict. Sixth Edition. 2007. p.111-225.]
9. ^ [Smith, Charles. Palestine and Arab-Israeli Conflict. Sixth Edition. 2007. p.199.]
10. ^ [Smith, Charles. Palestine and Arab-Israeli Conflict. Sixth Edition. 2007. p.207.]