Al-Qasim was born in 1939 to a Druze family in the Emirate of Transjordan (now Jordan), in the northern city of Zarqa, while his father served in the Arab Legion of King Abdullah.

[5] In his book About Principles and Art, he explains: While I was still at primary school the Palestinian tragedy occurred.

[citation needed] Al-Qasim claimed that the pan-Arab ideology of Nasserism impressed him during the nationalist post-1948 era.

[11] During this time, he virtually lost his nationalistic emotions upon hearing Israeli radio announcing its territorial gains after their victory.

[7] Al-Qasim worked as a journalist in Haifa where he ran the Arabesque Press and the Folk Arts Centre and was the editor-in-chief of the Israeli Arab newspaper Kul al-Arab.

[12] He would recite many of his poems to large audiences at monthly gatherings in the Arab towns and cities of the Galilee.