Adham Khanjar | |
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 Adham Khanjar (left) with Sadiq Hamza | |
| Born | 1890 (1890) Al-Marwaniyyeh,Jabal Amel,Ottoman Syria |
| Died | 1922 (aged 31–32) |
| Known for | Resisting the French occupation ofLebanon andSyria |
Adham Khanjar (Arabic:أدهم خنجر) (1890–1922) was a LebaneseShia Muslim revolutionary andSyrian nationalist who participated inguerilla warfare against the forces of theFrench occupation of Lebanon and Syria, and the attempt to assassinate GeneralGouraud, the FrenchHigh Commissioner.
Khanjar hailed from the feudalSa'b family ofJabal Amel in present-daySouthern Lebanon. Little is known about his life, but it appears he participated in theFranco-Syrian War in 1920, where he had metSultan al-Atrash.[1]
Khanjar joined a guerrilla band led by famous Syrian revolutionistAhmed Mreywed. And on 23 June 1921, the band ambushed the car of GeneralHenri Gouraud, the French High Commissioner in Syria and Lebanon, on its way fromDamascus toQuneitra. The general survived the attempt, but Commandant Branet was killed, and the governor of Damascus was wounded in the attack.[2]After the failed attempt, the band members, including Adham, fled toTransjordan.[citation needed]
In July 1922, Adham and a band of guerillas had tried to cross the border to sabotage the electrical generating station inDamascus, but the band had been dispersed at the border. With the French authorities in pursuit, he sought refuge at the home ofSultan al-Atrash.On July 7, Khanjar had arrived at the village ofAl-Qrayya inJabal al-Druze, but was recognized by two French soldiers and subsequently was captured while he was trying to get water at a well. Khanjar was transferred toSuwayda immediately. From his prison there, he sent a message to Sultan al-Atrash asking for his help, as he was seeking refuge at his house Al-Qrayya. Upon receiving the message, Sultan, who was in nearby village at that time, considered Khanjar's capture as a breach of theArab traditions of protecting the fugitive, and an attack on him personally. Thus, Sultan went to the provincial capital at Suwayda to protest the breach of customary law before the French authorities, and also sent a series of telegrams to the native and French authorities protesting this breach; but his appeal was rejected by both the native and French authorities. Afterwards, Sultan gathered his brothers and few friends to launch at attack on a Frenchconvoy they thought to transport Khanjar, who was sent toDamascus in an airplane that morning. The French retaliated to the destruction of the convoy by issuing warrants to the rebels, bombing their villages and destroying their houses.[1]
After his transport to Damascus, Khanjar was put to trial and found guilty. He was executed shortly after.[1]
Adham Khanjar is hailed as a hero by Syrian nationalists and Lebanese Shias, who along Sultan had sought to expel the French forces from the region. The people ofJabal al-Druze consider the Adham Khanjar incident an example of defending their values of protecting the fugitives,[1] and Khanjar's name is still mentioned today in the traditional songs of the area.[citation needed]
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