Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project

A commentary piece written by Sami Rasouli, Director of IARP’s partner organization the Muslim Peacemaker Teams, appeared in the Star Tribune on February 22, 2010. In the commentary, Sami writes, “In January, I returned to Iraq. I left Minneapolis with thanks for Americans’ commitment to peace and their generous spirit. I left, also, with a plea: Let us remember the people of my other homeland, Iraq. Let us remember our brothers and sisters.” To read the whole piece, click here.

After two weeks in their new Sister City of Minneapolis, 13 Iraqi delegates from Najaf departed on October 2 to head home. The delegates had a busy, productive time in the Twin Cities, meeting with hundreds of educators, business and nonprofit professionals, government officials, and Twin Cities residents. The delegates look forward to future visits and exchanges with Minneapolitans and Americans.

Sami Rasouli, Director of Muslim Peacemaker Teams, and Al Nettles, IARP Board Member, at the Cornucopia Art Center for the Iraqi Art Exhibition

One delegate, Dr. Asaad Al-Janabi, told us, “We are not here on vacation. We are here on a mission to tell Americans about life in Iraq and to work for closer relationships in the future.” Another delegate, Sameera Al-Halawi, said, “I am taking you all home in my heart.”

For more information about the delegation visit, please see “Small steps — and a serendipitous encounter — in journey toward peace in Iraq” by Michael Kiesow Moore in the MinnPost, or “Minnesotans help address Iraq’s water crisis, one filtration unit at a time,” by Kathlyn Stone in the TC Daily Planet.

Sami Rasouli, Muslim Peacemaker Teams Director and leader of the Iraqi delegation from Najaf, will remain in the U.S. for the next couple of months and will be available for speaking engagements. To schedule Sami for an engagement, please contact Marie Braun.

For the English version, click here.

2009R-337

قرار مدينة منيابولس

بأصدار من:  هادجس, جوردن, حافستد, رمينجتن, جلدن

قبول دعوة من مدينة النجف الاشرف في العراق للانضمام بإتفاقية التوأمة و دعوة مواطني مدينتي النجف و منيابولس للمشاركة بالنشاطات المذكورة في الاتفاقية ، والموافقة على تطوير الخطط الخاصة بها من قبل منظمة “مشروع المصالحة العراقية-الامريكية” More »

EngageMN, an online project aiming to give voice to Minnesota’s Muslim community, recently published an article about the new Sister City relationship between Minneapolis, USA and Najaf, Iraq. The article also highlights the upcoming delegation visit to Minneapolis from Najaf. To read the article, click here.

After more than a year of moving toward this goal, the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project (IARP) and our partner in Iraq the Muslim Peacemaker Teams (MPT) are celebrating the beginning of a formal Sister City relationship between Najaf, Iraq and Minneapolis, MN USA. On Friday, July 31st, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution by unanimous vote establishing the two cities as official Sister Cities.

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Sami Rasouli, Director of Muslim Peacemaker Teams, recently provided comments for an article by Al-Sabah, a major newspaper in Iraq. The article focuses on the reaction of Iraqi NGO leaders to a draft law before the Iraqi Parliament that regulates NGO activity. Many NGO leaders have spoken out against the law, which would give the government broad supervision and power over civil society. This law is potentially very dangerous for Iraq’s democracy because it would allow the government to essentially pick and choose which NGOs it wanted to allow (e.g., pro-government) and which to dissolve (e.g., anti-government). Below is the Al-Sabah article in Arabic as well as an article about the law by Niqash, in English. More »

Adnan

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Anthony Shadid at the Washington Post has a recent article about the pervasive influence of the American occupation on Iraqi culture (copied below). According to Shadid, some (mostly younger) Iraqis have embraced elements of American culture like rap, heavy metal and tattoos, while other Iraqis reject the changes. Great article, makes me wonder: how many Americans could name one famous Iraqi singer, or one Iraqi TV show, or one Iraqi Arabic word, or other marker of Iraqi pop culture? More »

I recently came across a great photo essay on the enduring suffering of Iraqis: SUFFERANCE: Iraqi Victims of War (some images graphic). Below are two images from the essay.

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Below are some images of children at Al-Ghadeer Kindergarten in Najaf, where a small water purifier unit was recently installed by the Muslim Peacemaker Teams. 150 kids attend the school.

Thanks to the sisters at Racine Dominicans for donating the purifier unit.

I feel bad for the kids having to sit through so many pictures! (there are many more not shown here…)