Sheikh Zahir al-Umar's Appointment as Multazem of Tiberias by the Wali of Sidon

In 1730, Zaydani sheikh Zahir al-Umar was directly appointed by the Wali of Sidon as the multazem of Tiberias. He soon fortified Tiberias along with other Zaydani strongholds such as Deir Hanna, Arraba, and Nazareth. Between that time and 1750, Zahir consolidated his control over the entire Galilee. He transferred his headquarters to the port village of Acre, which he renovated and refortified. Acre became the center of an expanding autonomous sheikhdom financed by a monopoly on cotton and other agricultural commodities from Palestine and southern Lebanon established by Zahir. Zahir's control of cotton and olive oil prices drew great revenues from European merchants, enabling him to marshal military resources needed to fend off military assaults by the governors of Damascus. Moreover, the monopolies ended the foreign merchants' manipulation of prices and financial exploitation of the local peasantry. Together with significantly improved general security and social justice, Zahir's economic policies made him popular with the local inhabitants. Zahir also encouraged immigration to Palestine, attracting large numbers of Jews and Melkite and Greek Orthodox Christians from throughout Ottoman Syria, revitalizing the region's economy. Zahir founded modern-day Haifa in 1769.