Arab American University hosted a lecture entitled “Palestinian Druze Belonging and Originality”, by Former Arab Deputy from the 1948 lands and President of the National Movement for Communication Deputy Said Nafa, attended by a number of university students, faculty members and administrative staff.
University President Prof. Dr. Ali Zedan Abu Zuhri welcomed Deputy Nafa and his accompanying delegation, giving him an explanation about the university, its faculties, specialties, bachelor and master academic programs and its current and future plans. The university seeks to offer new modern knowledge and to be a bright hope for the future, manage national unity and build Palestine.
After the reception, lecture’s activities started and managed by the Editor in chief of Al-Hayat Al-Jadeda newspaper Mr. Mahmmoud Abu Al-Haija and attended by University Vice President for Training Affairs Dr. Nizam Diab.
“Today, I am happy among you in the Arab American Univesity, which has been able to bring together the students of Palestine in all their races. This is the best embodiment of the Palestinian national unity, the 1967 and the 1948 Palestinians. We hope to have some of the diaspora Palestinians, too. Thanks to the university administration, which translated Palestinian unity into reality”.
During the lecture Nafa author of “Arab Druze and National Palestinian Movement until 1948” book, previewed the history if the National Palestinian Movement during the struggle against the Zionist movement and having the Druze minority as a major participant in the National Movement struggle and one of the Palestinian labor parties in the occupied lands.
He added, after Israel and the Zionist movement confiscated the Palestinian land and forcibly displaced villages and its residents, they realized that they couldn’t win over this people because of its interdependence and unity, knowing that our unity can never be confiscated, so they searched for internal conflicts and others and started another kind occupying Palestinian minds by planting concepts of discrimination and racism to succeed in distorting many Arab minorities image after occupying Palestine in 1948 including the Palestinian Arab Druze who Israel deliberately abandoned their struggle history through spreading many false and forge stories. Unfortunately, many of our Palestinian people have fallen into the trap created by the occupation and the Zionist movement.
Nafa explained, the Zionist movement immigration first victim was the Druze villages like Al-Ja’oon village and Al-Mutla, whose inhabitants were forced to leave and their lands confiscated. He pointed, the first armed operation in the struggle against the Zionist movement led by group of young Druze from Al-Mutla village. Also talked about the Druze role in the Palestinian revolutionary movements since 1930 and revolutions that followed especially the 1936 revolution in which a Druze military team participated and clashed with the Zionist occupier, many of them were martyred.
Stressing, Israel have forced compulsory conscription on Druze and Circassians. The Druze were left alone to face the compulsory conscription and had no support from their occupied and dispersed people, many anti-conscription movements emerged among the Druze minority suppressed by Israeli force of arms, many Druze were imprisoned and abused for refusing compulsory conscription.
“Today, my massage for the youth, communication among all Palestinian people is very important, communication between the 1967 and the 1948 Palestinians is very important and our communication as Palestinian people with our Arab brothers is also important. The isolation and discrimination practiced by Israel is still a demolition tool, not for unity and building. Our strength comes from our unity and preventing any penetration under any name or issue. Thank you for your keenness to consolidate our unity. Palestine homeland and land is for all of us”, He concluded.
