1913: Seeds of Conflict

Historical Characters

Najib Nassar

Najib Nassar

Najib Nassar was a Palestinian journalist and intellectual from Lebanon and the founder of Al-Karmil newspaper in Haifa, launched in 1908. The paper, with Nassar’s lead, voiced opposition to the Zionist activity, and in 1911 he published the first book in Arabic on Zionism.

FROM THE FILM …

Nassar (Arabic): To our sorrow we see that at this time of crisis in this country we’re living in, our state officials are selling the state to its enemies. The Zionists aren’t worried about money, and buy village after village.

Nassar (Arabic): How long will this mold feed on the body of our homeland? If we lose our homeland, what’s the point of living?

SOURCE:
Ottoman Brothers: Muslims, Christians, and Jews in Early Twentieth-Century Palestine, Michelle Campos, Stanford University Press, 2011