Nasif al-Nassar
| Nasif ibn al-Nassar al-Wa'ili | |
|---|---|
| Sheikh of Jabal Amil | |
|
In office 1749 – 24 September 1781 |
|
| Preceded by | Zahir al-Nassar |
| Succeeded by | Hamza ibn Muhammad al-Nassar |
| Personal details | |
| Died | 24 September 1781 Yaroun, Sidon Eyalet, Ottoman Empire |
| Children | Faris ibn Nasif al-Nassar (son) |
| Residence | Tebnine, Sidon Eyalet, Ottoman Empire |
| Religion | Shia Islam |
Nasif ibn al-Nassar al-Wa'ili (died 24 September 1781) was the most powerful sheikh of the rural Shia Muslim (Matawilah) tribes of Jabal Amil (modern-day South Lebanon) in the mid-18th century. He was based in the town of Tebnine and was head of the Ali al-Saghir clan. Under his leadership, the Jabal Amil prospered, due largely to the revenues from dyed cotton cloth exports to European merchants.
Nasif succeeded his brother Zahir al-Nassar as head of the Ali al-Saghir clan after Zahir died in a fall from his palace roof in 1749. Between 1750 and 1768, Nasif engaged in intermittent conflict with the autonomous Arab ruler of northern Palestine, Zahir al-Umar. In 1766, Nasif was defeated by Zahir al-Umar.(See Joudah). In September 1767, the enmity between Zahir and Nasif was such that the French consul in the area described Nasif as the principal adversary of Zahir. However, by 1768, Nasif and Zahir entered into a close and durable alliance, with both parties benefiting in their cooperation against the Ottoman governors of Sidon and Damascus. From then on, Zahir acted as the intermediary and protector of Nasif and the Shia clans vis-a-vis the Ottoman provincial authorities. Nasif, in turn, accompanied Zahir in many of his campaigns against the latter's rivals in Palestine, including the sheikhs of Jabal Nablus.
Nasif and Zahir challenged the authority of the Ottoman governors of Sidon and Damascus and their Druze allies who dominated Mount Lebanon. When this coalition of Ottoman forces launched an offensive against Nasif and Zahir in 1771, the forces of the latter two routed them in Lake Hula. After the Battle of Lake Hula, Nasif's forces, who numbered some 3,000 horsemen, decisively defeated a 40,000-strong Druze force under Emir Yusuf Shihab, killing some 1,500 Druze warriors. According to Baron Francois de Tott, a French mercenary of the Ottoman Army, Nasif's cavalry "put them to flight at the first onset".
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