Source: National Archives & Historic Records of Palestine
Politics • Historical Archive • 🇵🇸 Palestine • 1 views

Musa al-Alami 🇵🇸

موسى العلمي (Known as "Al-Alami")
Crown Counsel, Diplomat, Philanthropist, Founder of the Arab Development Society
Born 8 May 1897 🇵🇸 Jerusalem, Palestine
Passed Away 8 June 1984 Amman, Jordan
Lifespan 87 years old
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"Do not ask politicians for freedom; go out into the desert, drill for water, teach the orphan a craft, and build life from the barren sand."

Archival Overview

Visionary Palestinian philanthropist who drilled for water in the Jericho desert to create the historic Arab Development Society agricultural vocational school for orphans.

Biographical Record

Musa al-Alami was born in Jerusalem into a noble aristocratic family and earned a law degree from Trinity Hall, Cambridge, becoming a member of the Inner Temple. During the British Mandate, he served as private secretary to the High Commissioner and Crown Counsel, representing Palestine at the historic 1944 Alexandria Conference that founded the Arab League.

Following the 1948 Nakba, Alami turned his back on elite politics to dedicate his fortune and life to practical humanitarian relief. Defying foreign hydraulic experts who claimed it was impossible, he personally dug for subterranean water in the scorched Jericho desert, successfully discovering water in 1949 and building a world-renowned agricultural vocational school that educated thousands of Palestinian refugee orphans.

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial
Arab Development Society Grounds
Jericho, Palestine
GPS: 31.8600, 35.4600
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