The former leader of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, recalled important historical memories and milestones in his family and political career, stressing that he always sought “to unite Beni Ma’rouf and prevent any internal dispute,” and he achieved this “through openness to the various currents within the sect.”
During a television interview on the “Witness to the Era” program, Jumblatt addressed the period of the assassination of his father, Kamal Jumblatt, noting that he asked his mother, Nazira Jumblatt, to return to Mukhtara, “and she played a role in preserving it politically and morally.”
He explained that his mother adopted an approach based on neutrality in critical stages, “because of her inability to create a clash,” until Kamal Jumblatt grew up and chose “Arabic calligraphy.”
He also talked about the family’s origins, explaining that his grandfather, Shakib Arslan, chose the “great Islamic space,” considering that the Ottomans were an element for uniting Muslims, adding that he saw in Kamal Jumblatt a “new world” and tried to implant this vision in him.
Jumblatt also addressed the founding of the Progressive Socialist Party in 1949, noting that his father aimed through it to “rewrite the history of the Jumblatt family,” and stated that the year 1958 witnessed the beginning of the relationship between Kamal Jumblatt and the late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser.
In the context of his review of historical milestones, he referred to the events of 1860, stating that “the Muslims joined the Druze and were influenced by them in Lebanon.” He recalled the events of 1958, when he was ten years old, explaining that Al-Mukhtara was besieged at that time due to the dispute between Kamal Jumblatt and his allies on the one hand, and former President Camille Chamoun on the other hand, against the backdrop of the “Baghdad Pact” project.
He also recounted the incident of Prince Hassan al-Atrash, the companion of Sultan Pasha al-Atrash, communicating with Chamoun to warn him against attacking Mukhtara, describing her as a “Druze pilgrimage.”
Jumblatt concluded his speech by noting that he grew up in “a house with a political history that extends for hundreds of years,” stressing that his family played an important role in Lebanese political life for more than 300 years.
Walid Jumblatt’s statements gain special importance in the Lebanese context, given his historical role as one of the most prominent leaders of the Druze community, and his family’s long political history, as Al-Mukhtara was a major political and spiritual center for the Beni Ma’rouf in Lebanon.
Kamal Jumblatt is considered one of the most prominent political and intellectual figures in the modern history of Lebanon, as he played a pivotal role in establishing the Lebanese National Movement, and was one of the advocates of political reform and openness to the Arab world, before his assassination in 1977, a pivotal event in the civil war.
As for the period of 1958, it was one of the most prominent political crises in Lebanon, as confrontations broke out due to the division between supporters of Western policies and the Baghdad Pact, and opponents of them led by Kamal Jumblatt, who sided with the Arab nationalist movement led by Gamal Abdel Nasser.
The events of 1860 are considered crucial historical events in Mount Lebanon, as they witnessed sectarian conflicts, before developing into complex alliances that influenced the formation of the social and political structure of the region.
Jumblatt’s speech shows his adherence to the approach of internal moderation, and his constant endeavor to prevent divisions within the Druze community, through a policy of openness and balance, an approach he followed throughout his political career in dealing with local and regional developments.
