Haqqi Bey al-Azm, Secretary of the Arab nationalist group (Decentralization Party):

“Understand, dear brother, that [the Zionists] are marching towards their objectives at a rapid pace, thanks to the help of the Government and the indifference of the local population. I am sure that if we do nothing which is demanded by the present situation, they will achieve their objectives in a few years [in Palestine] where they will found a Jewish State … But by employing means of threats and persecutions – and it is this last means we must employ – by pushing the Arab population into destroying their farms and setting fire to their colonies, by forming gangs to execute these projects, then perhaps [the Zionists in Palestine] will emigrate to save their lives.”

Source: Madel, Neville J. The Arabs and Zionism Before World War I. Berkeley: University of California Press