Nuh Ibrahim (1913-1938) was arguably the leading poet of the 1936 Arab Revolution in British-occupied Palestine. In 1936, Ibrahim joined the Palestinian national liberation movement, joining the same brigades that al-Qassam had organized. It was around this time that Ibrahim published a collection of his nationalist (or militant) poems, which was quickly banned in Palestine. He was imprisoned for five months in 1937 following the publication of his poem, “Commander Dill,” which skewered the top British military commander in Mandate Palestine. In October 1938, Nuh and three other militants were traveling outside the village of Tamra when they were killed by a British patrol who threw their bodies down a well. Later, local residents retrieved and buried the bodies in the local cemetery.
Though Ibrahim was only 25 years old when he was martyred, his poems and songs (almost entirely in the Palestinian Colloquial, rather than Modern Standard Arabic) remain popular, having been long part of nationalist song repertoires, and performed by bands such as Firqat al-Ashiqeen.
The Arab and Englishman Debate
by Nūḥ Ibrāhīm
trans. Ahmed Saidam and Elliott Colla
The Arab:
Hey History—record this, write it down.
Hey Tyrant—crush and torture us!
What goes up must come down.
You shall rejoice, My Palestine
The Englishman:
Write it down or not—whatever!
I’m a stranger to promises and honor.
I fear only force.
That’s how I govern Palestine
The Arab:
Where’s my justice, where’re my rights,
Mr. Clever Englishman?
We thought you were compassionate,
We thought you kept your promises.
The Englishman:
Hey Arab—Talk all you like.
Who will listen to you, poor man?
Shout as much as you want, I won’t hear.
My ears are plugged!
The Arab:
You burned my heart,
With your promise to the Zionists.
Will you doublecross us?
Are you trying to destroy Palestine?
The Englishman:
There’s no going back on my promise to Balfour
I won’t give up the millions I got in return
Even if I have to escalate things with artillery,
airplanes and rifles!
The Arab:
Woe is me, My Oppressor
Your heart is hard and never softens
You think we’re animals?
Or just a nation of savages?
The Englishman:
Seems you don’t understand
The colonizers’ philosophy.
Wake up, if you’re still asleep:
We are a nation of excellence.
The Arab:
Mr. Englishman—we fought with you,
When you came out victorious!
What happened to our hopes and demands?
To our independence in Palestine?
The Englishman:
No matter how much we offer and promise,
—We might swear a thousand oaths!—
We won’t change this policy
That we follow.
The Arab:
As long as you do not hear my voice,
And have no respect for the law,
I will take care of myself,
As the Lord is my support.
The Arab:
Where have you gone, Good People of Honor,
Good Muslim Kings?
Let me hear your voices thunder,
To save Palestine.
Source: Nūḥ Ibrāhīm, Majmū‘at qaṣā’id Falasṭīn al-mujāhida (Damascus: Maṭba‘at al-I‘tidāl, N.D. [1939?], 42-3.
محاورة العربي والإنجليزي
للشاعر نوح إبراهيم
العربي
يا تاريخ سجل واكتب
يا ظالم اطغى وعذب
لازم الدهر يقلب
وتنفرحي يا فلسطين
الإنجليزي
سجل مجل ما بعرف
ولا بفهم عهد وشرف
غير القوة ما بخاف
وهذا حكمي بفلسطين
العربي
وين العدل والحقوق
يا انجليزي يا فطين
كنا منفتكرك شفوق
وإنك عالعهد أمين
الإنجليزي
يا عربي احكي لتشبع
من يفهملك يا مسكين
مهما تصيح ما بسمع
حيث آداني مسدودين
العربي
قلبي منك صار محروق
بوعدك للصهيونيين
راح تصفينا بخازوق
وبدك تهلك فلسطين؟
الإنجليزي
بوعدي لبلفور ما برجع
ما بترك قبض الملايين
وان كترتها بالمدفع
والطيارة والمرتين
العربي
آه منك يا ظالم
قلبك قاسي ما بلين
بتفتكرنا بهايم
والا أمة متوحشين
الإنجليزي
الظاهر انك مش فاهم
مبادي المستعمرين
اصحى ان كنت نايم
نحنا أمة موصوفين
العربي
يا نكليزي حاربنا معكم
وخرجتو منصورين
فين أملنا ومطاليبنا
واستقلالنا بفلسطين
الإنجليزي
مهما عطينا ووعدنا
وحلفنا ألف يمين
ما منغير سياستنا
هاللي عليها ماشيين
العربي
ما دمت ما تسمع حسي
وما بتراعي القوانين
أنا بدبر نفسي
والمولى إلي معين
العربي
فينكم يا أهل النخوة
ويا ملوك المسلمين
سمعوني صوتكم يدوي
لإنقاذ فلسطين