RAGHEB BEY NASHASHIBI’S SUDDEN VOLTE-FACE ON THE QUESTION OF PARTITION, WHICH BROUGHT HIS ARAB NATIONAL DEFENSE PARTY INTO AGREEMENT WITH GRAND MUFTI HAJ AMIN EL HUSSEINI, WHO HAS BITTERLY OPPOSED IT, CREATED CONSIDERABLE SURPRISE AND SPECULATION HERE TODAY.
LONG REGARDED AS A BITTER FOR OF THE MUFTI, NASHASHIBI, FORMER MAYOR OF JERUSALEM AND HEAD OF A STRONG ARAB FAMILY FACTION, HAD FOR WEEKS BEEN BELIEVED ORGANIZING SENTIMENT IN PALESTINE AND NEIGHBORING ARAB COUNTRIES IN SUPPORT OF THE BRITISH ROYAL COMMISSION’S PROPOSALS.
IN THIS, HE WAS BELIEVED ALLIED WITH EMIR ABDULLAH, RULER OF TRANSJORDAN, WHO IS PURPORTEDLY SLATED AS KING OF THE PROPOSED ARAB STATE TO BE CREATED FROM TWO-THIRDS OF PALESTINE ANNEXED TO HIS EMIRATE.
YESTERDAY, AN EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE ARAB PARTY ISSUED A MANIFESTO STATING OPPOSITION TO PARTITION ON THE GROUND THE PARTY WAS INTERESTED IN CREATION OF A “NOBLE ARAB NATION” AND THAT PARTITION WAS NOT A SOLUTION. NASHASHIBI PRESIDED AT THE MEETING.
NASHASHIBI’S DESERTION OF THE PRO-PARTITIONISTS WAS EXPLAINED HERE IN SEVERAL WAYS. SOME SAID HE WAS INFLUENCED BY THE SUPPORT GIVEN THE MUFTI BY IRAQ. OTHERS VOICED THE VIEW THAT HE WAS PLAYING POLITICS WITH ENGLAND, IN THE HOPE OF OBTAINING PLEDGES OF A HIGHER POSITION IN THE NEW ARAB STATE, AND THAT IF THE AID WAS FORTHCOMING HE WOULD AGAIN FIND A WAY TO FAVOR PARTITION.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
