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CAIRO TO DAMASCUS
of the United Nations he was surpassed only by Hitler. In the
evil of his intentions, Ilaj Amin equalled Hitler."
Shortly after the end of World War II, Americans were informed over America's Town Meeting of the Air:1 "The
Mufti is a patriot, is a gentleman, and he was just as patriotic
and had a right to his opinions as Jefferson and Franklin had
to theirs when they were fighting for American liberty." Since
then apologists for the Mufti have spoken widely in his behalf
in this country, and some of his associates—such as Emil
Ghoury—have even served as his spokesmen at the United
Nations. It is my fear that in the present period of panic and
indecision which finds us courting Fascist Franco, Nazi Krupp,
and many other Nazis and collaborators (in the delusion that
we can defeat Communism with Fascist partners) our State
Department may well face about and invite the Mufti into
our camp.
Who is this man?
His full name is Ilaj Amin el Husseini, Mufti ("Mufti"
meaning a high religious dignitary) of Jerusalem. The
"Grand" is self-styled. As Jerusalem is now divided between
Israel and Jordan—both of whom hate Haj Amin—he is, in
fact, an exiled, jobless Mufti.
Haj Amin burst into notoriety in April, 1920, when together with Moslem religious teachers he made inflammatory
speeches on the streets of Jerusalem, and was charged with
inciting the Arab mobs to violence against the Jews. As a result, Arab hoodlums killed five Jews and wounded more than
two hundred. He was tried by a British military court and
sentenced in absentia, for he had already fled. Later, Britain's
first High Commissioner for Palestine, Sir Herbert Samuel, a
Jew, as a gesture of good will granted him a special pardon,
and Haj Amin returned from exile.
In 1921 the current Mufti of Jerusalem died, and Sir Herbert was induced to appoint Haj Amin as the new Mufti from
1
By Dr. Khalil Totah of the Institute of Arab American Affairs. See
also Chapter II.