Personal Info
- Country of residence: Jordan
Information
Born in Nablus in 1909; brother of Adel Zu’aiter; completed An-Najah College, the enrolled at the Jerusalem School of Law, graduating with Law Certificate; worked as a teacher in Nablus and Acre from 1926-29; worked as a teacher but resigned when he got increasingly involved in the national movement; headed the Editing Dept. of the Jerusalem-based Mirat Ash-Sharq (Mirror of the East) newspaper, owned by Boulos Shehadeh, in 1929-30; was arrested in 1931 by the British authorities for his criticism of British pro-Zionist politics and was prevented from leaving Nablus for one year; was a founding member of the Istiqlal Party in 1932 and supervised its branches; was appointed a teacher at Dar Al-Mu’allamin (Teacher College) in Baghdad from 1933-35; then returned to Palestine and helped establishing national committees; also became treasurer of the national committee in Nablus; participated in the Arab Revolt in 1936 and was detained for his activism by the British; subsequently spent the years from 1937-51 in exile; moved to Iraq where he worked as a teacher and inspector; participated in 1941 in Rashid Ali Kilani’s revolt in Iraq; moved to Aleppo then Turkey (for three years) after the revolt was suppressed; returned to Syria, where he participated in national activities; was selected head of the Arab Delegation that went to Latin America in 1947 to explain and lobby for the Palestinian cause; counselor of the Syrian Delegation to the Arab League, and Deputy of the Syrian government at the Permanent Palestine Committee; moved to Palestine in 1951; was Sec.-Gen. of the Islamic Conference which convened in Jerusalem in 1959; appointed as Ambassador of Jordan in Damascus from 1963-64, then Ambassador in Iran; appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs; member of the House of Senates in 1966; appointed Minister of the Royal Hashemite Court in 1967; in 1968, appointed Ambassador at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; served as Ambassador in Beirut and Athens during 1971-75; during his stay in Lebanon, was head of the Islamic Cultural Center; left Beirut following the Israeli siege in 1982, during which his library was burnt; went back to Jordan and became a member of the House of Senates; in 1984, appointed head of the Royal Committee for Jerusalem Affairs, Amman; edited and wrote several books on Palestine, incl. The Palestine Question (English, Damascus, 1958), Documents on the Palestinian National Movements, 1918-1939 and 1935-1939, and My Memories; died in Amman on 11 April 1996.
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