Fuad Saba (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: ; 1902–1984) was a Palestinian accountant, businessman and politician during the

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

. Among the first Palestinians to receive an accounting certificate, he co-founded the international firm Saba & Co. with his brother. He was among the community leaders of Arab

Anglicans Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

in Palestine. A member of the Palestine Arab Party, Saba was a leading politician in the Mandatory Palestine who attempted to end the Jewish settlement in Palestine. Born in Ottoman Palestine, Saba was not allowed to return to Palestine at several points in his lifetime. Beginning in October 1937, he and other members of the

Arab Higher Committee The Arab Higher Committee () or the Higher National Committee was the central political organ of Palestinian Arabs in Mandatory Palestine. It was established on 25 April 1936, on the initiative of Haj Amin al-Husayni, the Grand Mufti of Je ...

were exiled for several years by the British government. Following forced displacement from

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

due to the

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in 1948, he relocated the Saba & Co. headquarters to

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Early life and education

Saba was born in Shefa-Amr, Ottoman Palestine, on 14 December 1902. He was the son of Salih Saba, an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

pastor, and Louisa Meyer. Saba attended the Orthodox School, the Maronite School, the Frères Secondary School in

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

and St. George's School in

. He obtained a degree in commerce from the

American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...

in 1924. Then he continued his studies in accountancy in England.

Career and activities

Following his graduation, Saba taught at Catholic Terra Sancta College in Jerusalem for a while. He was qualified as a certified accountant, receiving a license from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in the United Kingdom. Then, he and his brother Aziz started an accounting company, Saba & Co., in 1926. Saba's company expanded over time, opening branches in Haifa and

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. Its branches were opened later in

, Lebanon;

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, Jordan;

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, Syria; and

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, Iraq. The company opened further branches in Kuwait in 1949, and in Saudi Arabia and Libya in 1957. He was involved in the establishment of the

Arab Bank Arab Bank is a Jordanian bank that is one of the largest financial institutions in the Middle East. It is headquartered today in Amman, Jordan, and operates as a universal bank that serves clients in more than 600 branches spanning five contine ...

in 1930 and of the Palestinian National Fund. He worked as an

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of the Arab Bank; he was the first Palestinian licensed auditor to practice under the British Mandate. Saba was a member of the Palestine Arab Party which opposed the

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

rule in the region. He founded the Arab Publication Company in Jerusalem in 1935. The company produced two magazines on Arab economic affairs, ''Arab Economic Affairs'' (1935–1936) and ''Palestine and Transjordan'' (1936–37). The latter was published in English, and both titles were edited by Saba. He also founded the Arab News Agency. Saba was named as the secretary of the

in 1936. Alongside fellow commitee members Hussein Khalidi, Yaqub al-Ghusayn, Ahmed Hilmi Pasha, and Rashid al-Haj Ibrahim, Saba was arrested by the British Mandate rulers on 1 October 1937, immediately after the assassination of British official Lewis Andrews. The men were not responsible for any act related to the murder, but the British government in Palestine declared that they were "morally responsible" for the incident. They were deported to the

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in HMS ''Destroyer Active'' on 1 October and arrived the island 11 October 1937. Their exile ended on 28 December 1938, and they were sent to

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. Until February 1940, there was an exclusion order against him, with the British government not allowing him to return to Palestine. Saba became a member of the Palestinian delegation to the  Roundtable Conference at

St James's Palace St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, England. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster. Although no longer the principal residence ...

in London in February 1939. During the conference, the Palestinian delegation opposed the British

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proposals. Saba had to leave Jerusalem after the conference; he moved to Beirut where he resided until 1942, when his return to Palestine was allowed by the British. He continued to work in his accounting firm and was one of the founders of the Arabia Insurance Company and Al Mashriq Investment Company. He also became a fellow of the Institute of Arbitrators in Palestine during this period. He published a book entitled ''Income Tax and Its Problems in Palestine'' in 1947. Saba was forced to leave Jerusalem after the

in 1948. He settled in Beirut, where the headquarters of Saba & Co. was reopened. The company became the most comprehensive accounting firm in the

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and merged with

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in 1990.

Personal life and death

Saba was married to Muhiba Khattar Maluf, and they had three children: two sons, Suhail and Fawzi, and one daughter, Nadia. His wife, Muhiba, was of Lebanese origin. Fawzi Saba died in

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

on 18 September 2000. His another son, Suhail, died on 8 February 2023. Fuad Saba died in Beirut on 27 August 1984, and was buried there.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saba, Fuad 20th-century Palestinian politicians 1902 births 1984 deaths Arab people from Ottoman Palestine Arab people in Mandatory Palestine Financial company founders Palestinian business executives Palestine Arab Party politicians Palestinian emigrants to Lebanon Palestinian company founders Palestinian accountants Palestinian Protestants 20th-century Palestinian writers Exiled politicians Palestinian magazine editors American University of Beirut alumni