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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Israel
Index
Before the Second Aliyah, the indigenous Arab population of
Palestine had worked for and generally cooperated with the small
number of Jewish settlements. The increased Jewish presence and the
different policies of the new settlers of the Second Aliyah aroused
Arab hostility. The increasing tension between Jewish settler and
Arab peasant did not, however, lead to the establishment of Arab
nationalist organizations. In the Ottoman-controlled Arab lands the
Arab masses were bound by family, tribal, and Islamic ties; the
concepts of nationalism and nation-state were viewed as alien
Western categories. Thus, an imbalance evolved between the highly
organized and nationalistic settlers of the Second Aliyah and the
indigenous Arab population, who lacked the organizational
sophistication of the Zionists.
There were, however, small groups of Western-educated Arab
intellectuals and military officers who formed nationalist
organizations demanding greater local autonomy. The primary moving
force behind this nascent Arab nationalist movement was the
Committee of Union and Progress, a loose umbrella organization of
officers and officials within the Ottoman Empire in opposition to
the policies of Sultan Abdul Hamid. The removal of Sultan Abdul
Hamid by the Committee of Union and Progress in 1908 was widely
supported by both Arab nationalists and Zionists. The committee's
program of constitutional reform and promised autonomy aroused hope
of independence on the part of various nationalities throughout the
Ottoman Empire.
After 1908, however, it quickly became clear to Zionists and
Arabs alike that the nationalism of Abdul Hamid's successors was
Turkish nationalism, bent on Turkification of the Ottoman domain
rather than granting local autonomy. In response, Arab
intellectuals in Beirut and Damascus formed clandestine political
societies, such as the Ottoman Decentralization Party, based in
Cairo; Al Ahd (The Covenant Society), formed primarily by army
officers in 1914; and Al Fatat (The Young Arabs), formed by
students in 1911. The Arab nationalism espoused by these groups
lacked support, however, among the Arab masses.
Data as of December 1988
A street in the Old City of Jerusalem
Courtesy Les Vogel
Damascus Gate leading to the Old City of Jerusalem
Courtesy Les Vogel
Arab Nationalism
Before the Second Aliyah, the indigenous Arab population of
Palestine had worked for and generally cooperated with the small
number of Jewish settlements. The increased Jewish presence and the
different policies of the new settlers of the Second Aliyah aroused
Arab hostility. The increasing tension between Jewish settler and
Arab peasant did not, however, lead to the establishment of Arab
nationalist organizations. In the Ottoman-controlled Arab lands the
Arab masses were bound by family, tribal, and Islamic ties; the
concepts of nationalism and nation-state were viewed as alien
Western categories. Thus, an imbalance evolved between the highly
organized and nationalistic settlers of the Second Aliyah and the
indigenous Arab population, who lacked the organizational
sophistication of the Zionists.
There were, however, small groups of Western-educated Arab
intellectuals and military officers who formed nationalist
organizations demanding greater local autonomy. The primary moving
force behind this nascent Arab nationalist movement was the
Committee of Union and Progress, a loose umbrella organization of
officers and officials within the Ottoman Empire in opposition to
the policies of Sultan Abdul Hamid. The removal of Sultan Abdul
Hamid by the Committee of Union and Progress in 1908 was widely
supported by both Arab nationalists and Zionists. The committee's
program of constitutional reform and promised autonomy aroused hope
of independence on the part of various nationalities throughout the
Ottoman Empire.
After 1908, however, it quickly became clear to Zionists and
Arabs alike that the nationalism of Abdul Hamid's successors was
Turkish nationalism, bent on Turkification of the Ottoman domain
rather than granting local autonomy. In response, Arab
intellectuals in Beirut and Damascus formed clandestine political
societies, such as the Ottoman Decentralization Party, based in
Cairo; Al Ahd (The Covenant Society), formed primarily by army
officers in 1914; and Al Fatat (The Young Arabs), formed by
students in 1911. The Arab nationalism espoused by these groups
lacked support, however, among the Arab masses.
Data as of December 1988
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