Palestinian Culture

History of Palestinians in SA:

  • Much of the migration of Palestinians to Australia has occurred after major conflicts that displaced Palestinian people from their homes. 
  • Hassam Bushara was among the earliest known Palestinian immigrants to South Australia. He arrived in Port Adelaide as a young man in 1908. For several years he believed he was in America. Unscrupulous shipping agents often exploited naive immigrants by charging them for a passage to the most expensive destination.
  • The 1947 census recorded that there were 108 Palestinian-born South Australians.
  • A number of Palestinians came to South Australia after the creation of Israel in 1948. They were among 700,000 Palestinians who fled the region at that time.
  • A group of Palestinians immigrated to South Australia following the 1967 Six-Day War between Israel and Egypt, Syria and Jordan. About a million Palestinians were displaced by the subsequent Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
  • Recent Palestinian immigrants have come to South Australia to improve employment opportunities and their quality of life.
  • Palestinian South Australians have settled throughout metropolitan Adelaide. They are employed in a range of occupations.