Daher al-Umar

Daher al-Umar al-Zaydani, alternatively spelled Zahir al-Umar or Dahir al-Umar (Arabic: ظاهر العمر الزيداني, romanized: Ẓāhir al-ʿUmar az-Zaydānī, 1689/90 – 21 or 22 August 1775), was the paramount sheikh of the Zayadina family and ruler of northern Palestine from the 1730s until his death in 1775, during Ottoman rule. At his zenith in 1774, he controlled the Syrian coast from Jaffa to Sidon, though formal recognition of his status was limited to that of a multazim (tax farmer).

In 1730, Daher took over Tiberias and by c. 1740, Safed and Nazareth. He and his family fortified these towns and other Galilee villages, most notably Deir Hanna, helping them withstand sieges by the governor of Damascus, Sulayman Pasha al-Azm, in 1742–1743. By then, Daher controlled the area's cotton crop and eventually monopolized its high-demand trade with the French, amassing substantial wealth. In 1750, he made the outlet of this trade, the ruined port village of Acre, into his capital, developing it into Syria's third largest city. He expanded into Haifa and its environs in the 1760s, bringing him into conflict with the governor of Damascus, Uthman Pasha al-Kurji. Daher allied with Egypt's mamluk ruler, Ali Bey, and the Shias of southern Lebanon. Their military campaigns ousted Uthman Pasha and his son from Damascus and Sidon, culminating with Daher's victory at Lake Hula and occupation of Sidon in 1771.

Daher's fortunes turned in 1772 with the ouster of Ali Bey by his deputy Abu al-Dhahab. Despite the setback, Daher, with support from the Russian navy, reoccupied Jaffa and dislodged the Ottomans from Beirut. By 1774, the Ottomans' supreme army chief in Syria, Uthman Pasha al-Wakil, formally recognized his practical control of Sidon province and most of Palestine, though this was soon voided by the new sultan. In March 1775, Abu al-Dhahab ousted Daher from Acre, but died soon after and Daher returned to power. In August, the Ottomans, freed up from their six-year war with Russia, blockaded Acre and eliminated Daher. Acre's new governor, Ahmad Pasha al-Jazzar, neutralized the last of the Zayadina in 1776.

Daher's establishment of law and order, flexible taxation policies, and battlefield reputation earned him the goodwill of the local peasantry. He invited Christian and Jewish immigrants to his domains from across the empire, stimulating the economy and leading to the significant growth of the Christian communities in Acre and Nazareth and the Jewish community in Tiberias. Under his rule, northern Palestine's main centers, Acre, Haifa, Tiberias, and Nazareth, urbanized and prospered after long periods of decline. With Acre's restoration and the reestablishment of Haifa, Daher strengthened the Galilee's ties with the world, which continued under Jazzar. Daher's autonomy over much of Palestine has made him a national hero among Palestinians today.