[1] Abu Durra was a close disciple of the Muslim preacher and rebel Izz ad-Din al-Qassam and one of the few survivors of a shootout between British forces and Qassam, in which the latter was killed.

He also administered a rebel court system in his areas of operation, which prosecuted and executed several Palestinian village headmen suspected of colluding with the British authorities.

Abu Durra was born during the Ottoman era, in 1900, in the village of Silat al-Harithiya, located near Jenin in Jabal Nablus (Samarian highlands).

Al-Qassam and twelve of his close supporters (known as "Qassamiyun" or "Qassamites"), including Abu Durra, evaded the authorities for a time before being cornered in the hills near Ya'bad in October 1935.

[1] Like other local rebel leaders, Abu Durra organized his forces into a relatively small core of semi-permanent fighters and non-permanent, volunteer-based bands (fasa'il; sing.

His earlier recruitment effort to enlist Druze fighters in Haifa was relatively unsuccessful, and his demand for financial contributions from the Mount Carmel villages to purchase 30 rifles were rebuffed.

[10] Due in part to an alert sent by the Druze residents of Mount Carmel following an attack by Abu Durra in late November 1938, the British Army launched an ambush on his men,[11] while they were on their way to their Umm al-Fahm headquarters.

[6] In the course of the revolt, Abu Durra headed a rebel court in his areas of operation, which were the vicinity of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Wadi Ara, and the Jezreel Valley.

[14] According to interviews conducted by historian Ted Swedenberg of former Palestinian rebels and civilians who lived during the revolt, offhand estimates of the number of makhatir Abu Durra ordered to be executed ranged from around 20 to 85.

On 24 July, while he was traveling in the eastern Jordan Valley, apparently with the intention of returning to Palestine, he was arrested by the Arab Legion headed by British general John Glubb Pasha.

[17] Abu Durra's arrest and extradition were unpopular among the people of Transjordan and as his convoy passed through various towns on its way to Palestine, it was surrounded by crowds cheering for him.