Samiha Khalil
Encyclopedia
Samiha al-Qubaj Salameh Khalil (1923 in Anabta
, District of Tulkarm
- February 26, 1999 in Ramallah
), also known as Umm Khalil, was a Palestinian
charity worker as well as a prominent figure in Palestinian
politics.
Born in a village, she dropped out of highschool at the age of seventeen to marry Salameh Khalil. After the 1948 War
, the couple fled to Gaza
where they raised a family of five children, and in 1964 Samiha finally returned to school and graduated.
In 1965, Khalil came to the public eye when she founded the al-Inaash al-Usra society in her garage - it would grow to become the largest and most effective Palestinian welfare organization. In 1977 she became the first and only female member of the National Front Committee.
During the 1980s, Khalil was tied to the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
and detained six times by the IDF; she saw two of her children deported from Israel
and the other three (who had been out of the country at the time) forbidden from re-entering. She was eventually placed under town-arrest in al-Bireh
.
In 1996 she ran for president of the Palestinian Authority, losing to Yasser Arafat
, while garnering 11.5% of the vote.
A grandmother of 13, Khalil remained an active member in the political scene, serving on the Palestinian National Council
up until her death in 1999.
Anabta
Anabta is a Palestinian town in the Tulkarm Governorate in the northern West Bank, located 9 kilometers east of Tulkarm. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Anabta had a population of 7,300 inhabitants in 2006. Anabta is administered by a municipal council and is one of the...
, District of Tulkarm
Tulkarm Governorate
The Tulkarm Governorate is an administrative district and one of 16 Governorates of the Palestinian National Authority located in the northwestern West Bank. The governorate's land area is 268 square kilometers. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the governorate had a...
- February 26, 1999 in Ramallah
Ramallah
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
), also known as Umm Khalil, was a Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
charity worker as well as a prominent figure in Palestinian
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
politics.
Born in a village, she dropped out of highschool at the age of seventeen to marry Salameh Khalil. After the 1948 War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
, the couple fled to Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
where they raised a family of five children, and in 1964 Samiha finally returned to school and graduated.
In 1965, Khalil came to the public eye when she founded the al-Inaash al-Usra society in her garage - it would grow to become the largest and most effective Palestinian welfare organization. In 1977 she became the first and only female member of the National Front Committee.
During the 1980s, Khalil was tied to the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine is a Palestinian Marxist-Leninist, secular political and military organization. It is also frequently referred to as the Democratic Front, or al-Jabha al-Dimuqratiyah...
and detained six times by the IDF; she saw two of her children deported from Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and the other three (who had been out of the country at the time) forbidden from re-entering. She was eventually placed under town-arrest in al-Bireh
Al-Bireh
al-Bireh or el-Bira is a Palestinian city adjacent to Ramallah in the central West Bank, north of Jerusalem. It is situated on the central ridge running through the West Bank and is above sea level, covering an area of...
.
In 1996 she ran for president of the Palestinian Authority, losing to Yasser Arafat
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
, while garnering 11.5% of the vote.
A grandmother of 13, Khalil remained an active member in the political scene, serving on the Palestinian National Council
Palestinian National Council
The Palestinian National Council is the legislative body of the Palestine Liberation Organization and elects its Executive Committee, which assumes leadership of the organization between its sessions. The Council normally meets every two years. Resolutions are passed by a simple majority with a...
up until her death in 1999.
External links
- Al Inaash al-Usra society
- Samiha Khalil biography, at PASSIA