Hussam al-Din Jarallah | |
Native Name: | حسام الدين جار الله |
Office: | Grand Mufti of Jerusalem |
Term Start: | 1948 |
Term End: | 6 March 1954 |
Predecessor: | Amin al-Husayni |
Successor: | Muhammad Ahmad Hussein |
Office2: | Chief Qadi and Inspector of the Muslim Religious Courts in Palestine |
Term Start2: | ? |
Term End2: | ? |
Birth Date: | 1884 |
Birth Place: | Jerusalem |
Death Date: | 6 March 1954 |
Nationality: | Palestinian |
Education: | al-Azhar University |
Religion: | Sunni Islam |
Occupation: | Religious leader, politician |
Hussam al-Din Jarallah (Arabic: حسام الدين جار الله; 1884 – 6 March 1954) was a Sunni Muslim leader of the Palestinian people during the British Mandate of Palestine and was the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem from 1948 until his death.
Jarallah was born in Jerusalem and was educated at the al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. He was a leading member of the Supreme Muslim Council during the British Mandate of Palestine. Politically, he was an ally of the Nashashibis and a rival of the al-Husaynis. When Kamil al-Husayni died in 1921, Jarallah had significant support from the ulema in Jerusalem to succeed al-Husayni as Grand Mufti. Indeed, he won the most votes in the election for the post. However, the British High Commissioner Herbert Samuel convinced Jarallah to withdraw, thus allowing al-Husayni's brother Amin to qualify as a candidate, whom Samuel then appointed Grand Mufti of Jerusalem[1] As a consolation, the British appointed Jarallah as the chief qadi and inspector of the Muslim religious courts in Palestine.
After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Transjordan (now Jordan) occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Old City, an act opposed by the exiled Grand Mufti. On 20 December 1948, King Abdullah I named Jarallah Mufti in place of al-Husayni.[2]