282 • 16 THE CONTEST FOR PALESTINE
Amin al-Husayni
A min al-Husayni (1893-1974) is a hero to many Palestinian Arabs and a
-/^villain to Zionists. He was born into a prominent Jerusalem family and re¬
ceived his early education there. Later he attended al-Azhar in Cairo and the
Istanbul Military Academy. After serving briefly as an artillery officer in the
Ottoman army during World War I, Husayni became interested in the Arab na¬
tionalist cause, especially Palestinian national politics. Britain's high commis¬
sioner in Jerusalem decided that the best way to tame this rising local leader
was to give him some responsibility. Thus, in 1922, he was named Grand Mufti
of Jerusalem and appointed president of the newly formed Supreme Muslim
Council. The British would later regret these appointments.
Using these positions to his advantage, Husayni came to dominate the
Palestinian Arab drive for independence. His goal of an independent Arab
Palestine put him at odds with the British mandate government, which
backed the Zionist movement for a Jewish homeland in Palestine. As ever¬
growing numbers of Jewish immigrants arrived from Europe, Palestinian fac¬
tions united in 1936 to form the Arab Higher Committee under Husayni's
leadership. Demanding independence and an end to Jewish immigration into
Palestine, the committee declared a general strike and refused to pay taxes.
When the strike evolved into an open rebellion, the British removed Husayni
from his position as Grand Mufti and declared the Higher Committee illegal,
forcing Husayni to flee to Lebanon in 1937. Two years later he was forced to
flee again, this time to Iraq, where he took part in the 1941 uprising against
the British. Eventually he sought refuge in Nazi Germany.
His alliance of convenience with the Germans during World War II made
Husayni a controversial and hated figure in the West. Yet it is historically in¬
correct to regard him as a Nazi. He was the leader of a nationalist movement
fighting against British imperialism and Zionist colonialism. Declared an out¬
law by the British, he could either surrender to his oppressors or seek refuge
with Britain's enemies. He chose the latter path. While living in Germany he
did make radio appeals to his fellow Arabs, asking them not to support the Al¬
lies, but there is no convincing evidence that he took part in the Nazi genocide
against the Jews, as some Zionists have suggested.
After the war Husayni made his way to Cairo, where he continued his strug¬
gle for an independent Palestine, but now it was the Egyptian government
(which had its own ambitions in Palestine) that tried to restrain and manipu¬
late him. At the same time, the Zionists launched a concerted smear campaign
to connect Husayni's Palestinian nationalist movement with the Nazi Holo¬
caust. Thus thwarted by both internal Arab and Zionist opposition, his efforts
came to naught. He died in Beirut at the age of eighty-one, discredited in the
West but still a hero to many Palestinians.