Dean of Palestinian Refugees in Algeria to “Echorouk”: Algeria Stands with Palestine in an Era of Arab Disgrace

✍️ BY: Dr. Hana Saada

In a moving testimony marking the 77th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, Yusuf Ahmad Nazzal recalls a life shaped by dispossession, gratitude for Algeria’s unwavering support, and unrelenting faith in the fall of the Zionist entity.

Algiers, Algeria | May 19th, 2025 — As the world marks the 77th anniversary of the Nakba—the catastrophe that befell the Palestinian people on May 15, 1948—Yusuf Ahmad Nazzal, Dean of Palestinian refugees in Algeria, opened his modest home in the teachers’ neighborhood of Aïn Tédelès in eastern Mostaganem to Echorouk, offering a poignant and unfiltered account of his people’s enduring struggle and the betrayal of the Arab world.

At 84 years old, Nazzal is a living witness to the horrors inflicted by the Zionist entity during the forceful occupation of Palestine—an ancestral land he describes with reverence as the “land of prophets and messengers,” the cradle of divine religions, and the first qibla of Muslims with its sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque, destined to remain an eternal spiritual axis for millions across the Muslim world.

Having lived in Algeria for six decades, Nazzal expressed, in heartfelt words, his eternal gratitude to the Algerian people and their leadership, led by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, for their unwavering and principled stance in supporting the just cause of Palestine. He lauded Tebboune’s political courage in championing Palestinian unity and defending the right of Palestinians to resist oppression—at a time, he lamented, when much of the Arab and Islamic world has descended into disgraceful silence and complicity.

“We live in a time when many Arab regimes have shamefully normalized with the Zionist entity,” he stated with sorrow. “Yet Algeria has remained dignified—unshaken in its solidarity—echoing the principles of its own revolution in support of our resistance.”

Recounting the events of 1948 with vivid precision, Nazzal recalled how a sinister Western conspiracy, spearheaded by Britain, the United States, and other European powers, culminated in the withdrawal of British colonial forces under the pretext of ending their mandate over Palestine. In truth, this departure merely paved the way for the implementation of the infamous Balfour Declaration of 1917, a colonial promise to establish a so-called Jewish homeland on Palestinian soil—later realized with the founding of the Zionist entity on May 15, 1948, under the auspices of the United Nations and the acquiescence of imperial powers.

As the Zionist militias—such as Irgun and Lehi—waged a brutal campaign of terror and ethnic cleansing, over 700,000 Palestinians were uprooted from their homes. Nazzal’s own family was among those displaced, seeking refuge in Jenin, then under Jordanian administration.

Despite the anguish, Nazzal remembers a time when Palestinian hearts beat in unison with the Algerian people during their war of liberation. He tearfully recounted a personal memory from 1957, when, amid dire poverty and relentless Zionist aggression, his family in the West Bank contributed what little they had—some eggs and a few coins—in a solidarity campaign to support Algeria’s revolution.

The resonance between the two struggles would later draw Nazzal to Algeria as a volunteer teacher. Armed with a teaching certificate from a Jordanian university, he arrived in 1965 and was welcomed warmly by then-Minister of Education, Dr. Taleb Ibrahimi, who praised the Palestinian educators who had come to help build post-independence Algeria. Nazzal began teaching in Douéra, Algiers, then moved to Relizane, eventually settling in Aïn Tédelès in 1973—a town that embraced him and his family as their own.

Today, Nazzal remains a pillar of his community and a proud father of sons who continue to serve the Palestinian cause, whether on the frontlines or in support roles. With firm conviction, he affirms that the downfall of the Zionist entity is inevitable. “Victory belongs to the people of truth,” he declared. “The sacrifices of our youth will dismantle this illegitimate regime—Palestine will be free from the river to the sea.”

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