The New York Times · 13 January 1937

CP-1937-024

MUFTI SAYS LIBERTY IS AIM IN PALESTINE

Tells Royal Inquiry the Arabs Seek Full Freedom—Cites League Covenant.

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Transcribed from the clipping

JERUSALEM, Jan.

12.—Testifying before the royal inquiry commission today, Haj Amin el Husseini, Mufti of Jerusalem, said Palestine Arabs’ demands were: Abandonment of the Jewish national home policy in Palestine, complete stoppage of Jewish immigration, prohibition of the sale of land to Jews, termination of the period of mandatory rule, a treaty between Great Britain and Palestine and the establishment of an independent government constitutionally elected.

The Mufti, testifying on behalf of the Arab High Committee as the first and only witness of the day, expressed a belief that Jews intended, when they became a majority in Palestine, to destroy Moslem holy places. He asserted the Arabs’ aim of complete independence did not differ from that of other countries.

He said the revolution under King Hussein in alliance with Britain was for complete independence of all Arab countries, including Palestine, and that this had been acknowledged by leading British statesmen and soldiers.

The Mufti said the principle of self-determination was recognized in Article XXII and Article XX of the League of Nations covenant and that all agreements that were not consistent with the covenant were void. He said the Balfour Declaration was inconsistent with these articles and therefore should be discarded.

Earl Peel, chairman of the commision, reminded the Mufti that responsible Jewish bodies had given assurances in regard to Moslem holy places.

How this transcription was made

Read from the scan at 6x to 9x by a machine looking at the image of the page, not by OCR and not by a person. No masthead or folio; the date follows the dateline 'JERUSALEM, Jan. 12.' plus one day and is corroborated by the page naming Earl Peel as chairman of the royal inquiry commission. The paper is named on the page by the credit line 'Special Cable to THE NEW YORK TIMES.'. Printed error kept as set: 'chairman of the commision'. Every statement by the Mufti is in reported speech; the page gives him no verbatim words.

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