Central Committee of National Jihad in Palestine facts for kids

The Central Committee of National Jihad in Palestine was a group formed to help guide a big uprising in Mandatory Palestine (which is now Israel and Palestine). This uprising happened between 1936 and 1939. The Committee started in November 1937.

Its leaders were Palestinian Arab leaders. They had been sent away from Palestine by the British authorities. Most of them lived in Damascus. A key leader was Izzat Darwaza. The Committee wanted to give money and advice to the local leaders of the uprising. These local leaders were mostly from villages. They often acted on their own, without much direction from the Committee.

It was hard for the Committee to control the uprising. The leaders in Damascus and the fighters in Palestine had different ideas. This made it difficult for the Committee to influence what happened. Only a few local leaders worked closely with the Committee. Many others acted independently.

Who Led the Committee?

The Central Committee was first led by Izzat Darwaza. He was a teacher and historian. He was also a founder of the al-Istiqlal (meaning "Independence Party").

Later, other important figures joined the Committee. These included Jamal al-Husayni, who led the Palestine Arab Party. Also, Akram Zuaiter, another former member of al-Istiqlal, joined. A fighter leader named Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni also became part of the group.

The Committee was greatly influenced by Mohammad Amin al-Husayni. He was known as the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. He had also been sent away by the British. He used to lead the Arab Higher Committee, which the British had closed down in 1937.

Challenges in Leadership

The Committee tried to get Fawzi al-Qawuqji to lead the uprising. He was a well-known Arab fighter. His deputy, Muhammad al-Ashmar, was also invited. However, they did not accept the role. Al-Qawuqji had been a leader in the uprising back in 1936.

Local leaders fighting in Palestine were often careful about outside leaders. They also didn't always trust each other. Darwaza said that each commander saw their area as their own. They would get upset if another leader came into their space.

Military Command Structure

In late 1938, the fighters created a central military group. It was called the Bureau of the Arab Revolt in Palestine. This group was meant to be the military part of the Central Committee.

However, two main commanders, Abd al-Rahim al-Hajj Muhammad and Arif Abd al-Raziq, had a growing rivalry. This made it hard for the Bureau to work well. They were supposed to take turns being the General Commander of the Revolt. Two other commanders in the Bureau were Yusuf Abu Durra and Abu Ibrahim al-Kabir.

In February 1939, al-Hajj Muhammad was made the only General Commander by the Committee. But he was killed in a fight with British troops in March. After his death, the Committee named Ahmad al-Hasan as the new General Commander. However, this did not help the fighters much. The uprising slowly ended by the winter of 1939.