ABSTRACT
The Palestinians Arabs have at present no willed of their own. Neither have they ever developed any specifically Palestinian nationalism. Abdullah neither trusted nor respected the Palestinians, but he knew he could not further his interests without establishing some base amidst them. His contacts with the Palestinian Arabs were intensified in the years leading up to the war. In September 1948 Shaykh Sulayman Taji al-Faruqi stated "on behalf of the refugees in Jordan" that they "opposed any Palestinian Government created by leaders who (had) deserted them and escaped to safe places", and called upon King Abdullah to ensure their rights under him. The Second Palestinian Arab Congress, known as "The Jericho Congress" or "Ja'bari's Conference", was called by the Executive of the First Palestinian Arab Congress to assemble on December 1, 1948. This chapter attempts to revive older bodies such as the Palestinian Arab Villagers League, the Haifa Cultural Association in Nablus and the Jaffa-Muslim Sport Club in Ramallah.
