A Time to Forgive or Forget?

 

Standing outside UN Development Program office in Baghdad Dec. 9, 2002

After 20 Years – Is It Time to Forgive? By Steve Clemens

 

March 20, 2003 marked the beginning of (another) US invasion of Iraq. It was based on lies and anti-Muslim fears and resentments, but average Americans often believed their national leaders and the corporate media which basically silenced those who opposed military intervention.

 

Having traveled to Baghdad in December 2002 as part of an ad-hoc “Peace Team”, with the intent to be present with the Iraqi people in the face of a threatened “Shock and Awe” bombardment, I returned back to Minnesota 3 months before the war actually began. I used those 3 months to speak to more than 60 groups at schools, colleges, community centers, and churches about what I saw and learned about Iraq – hoping to galvanize the vocal opposition to the war. I concentrated my pictures with the faces of children, noting that these are often the primary victims of the brutal sanctions regime placed on the country by the US and Britain since 1991, and photos of power plants and water treatment facilities in complete disrepair.

 

After the war and occupation dragged on -much beyond the “cakewalk” promised by Rumsfeld and others, and well beyond the “Mission Accomplished” photo op of our President decked out in a flight suit on the deck of a carrier off the coast of San Diego, the mood in our nation began to gradually turn as more US military, mercenary contractors, and even embedded journalists failed to return or returned with missing limbs, head traumas, and/or PTSD. Notions of “the long war” arose as the occupation past the length of the Vietnam fiasco. And Afghanistan continued to demand more military sacrifices as well.

 

A local restauranteur I hadn’t met yet, Sami Rasouli, decided to return to his native Iraq city of Najaf to see for himself. Some local friends approached me to ask if I would join their efforts to find ways to financially support him and to help “broaden” his voice by sharing some of the Iraqi art he brought back with him to dispel the myths about the land and culture we were destroying. Those efforts eventually coalesced into what became The Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project, an NGO based in Minneapolis which worked to educate and encourage and heal the toxic divides in our country over the war and between Americans and Iraqis.

 

At Sami’s behest, we worked to have Minneapolis become a Sister City with his home city of Najaf, and Sami brought numerous delegations of Iraqi professionals to the US when visas could be secured. Finally, after President Obama removed US troops out of the country (and before returning them to attack a rising ISIS a little more than a year or two later), IARP accepted an invitation by the governor of Najaf to visit our Sister City in November 2012. The governor had us stay in a “guest house” overlooking the Euphrates River – a former gaudy palace built by Saddam Hussein during his brutal reign. Despite the destruction wrought in their nation and homeland by US and British militaries and mercenary contractors, the Iraqi people we met welcomed us with smiles, tears, and embraces. It seemed to me that they were willing to forgive -if not forget- those of us who traveled a great distance to be with them.

 

But the governing system foisted on the Iraqi people by the Occupiers, and, at the encouragement of former exiled “elites” like Chalabi, emphasized sectarian divides and power and privileges given disproportionally to sectarian militia or tribal leaders mostly at the expense of the ordinary Iraqi citizens. Corruption was rampant – both by US
contractors who skimmed off much of the money allocated to rebuild schools, hospitals, power grids, water treatment plants, … - as well as sectarian “leaders” who saw their opportunity to regain what they claim Saddam “stole” from them. Tragically this continues today.

 

On the 20^th anniversary much of the US media used the term “mistake” when describing the invasion, war, and occupation. There were few voices that really identified it as a “crime” even though that same media used that term to describe Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The irony of forgetting Abu Ghraib, “black sites” run by the CIA, Guantanamo prisoners, as well as the destruction of civilian infrastructure is not lost on other nations or Iraqis as we, as a nation, pivot to a Cold War with China as well as a proxy war with Russia.

 

We can’t ask the Iraqis to forgive us if we work diligently to forget what we did and fail to learn that military might cannot install either democracy or civility. Iraq continues be seen as still “unstable”. The US State Department lists Iraq as “Level 4: Do Not Travel” as of January 3 of 2023, adding, “Do not travel to Iraq due to terrorism, kidnapping, armed conflict, civil unrest, and Mission Iraq’s limited capacity to provide support to U.S. citizens.”

 

So, short of traveling back to Iraq – and, is there a government official there who would even invite us? – how can we work for healing and reconciliation today? At least one way is to get to know and welcome the Iraqis who have come here as immigrants, asylees, refugees, and visitors. Listen to their stories. Hear and learn from their experiences. Pay attention to the poets and artists, the playwrights and storytellers. Visit their mosques and attend iftar gatherings during the holy month of Ramadan. Ask questions. Have empathy. Open your arms. Welcome them to your homes. Say, “I’m sorry” without any expectations of hearing a word of forgiveness. How are individuals able to forgive what nations do to others? And read – start with A Stranger in Your Own City: Travels in the Middle East’s Long War by Ghaith Abdul-Ahad.

Day 11: Moving From Generosity to Abundance

Abundance Beyond Generosity: On The Road to Babylon on Day 11 by Steve Clemens

It was raining this morning as we left for the city of Hilla and the nearby ruins of Babylon. We were riding in a 20+ passenger bus with members of the Muslim Peacemaker Team as we headed about 45 minutes north of Najaf. Deborah, a delegate from Boston had asked Sami Rasouli a question about the structure of the Arabic language in comparison to English. Sami was explaining the difference between a “request” and an “order” when someone is asking another to do something and the conversation flowed into a discussion about our differing cultures. Because of his long-time experience both as an American and an Iraqi, Sami has been an ideal guide in helping us navigate between the two cultures on this journey of reconciliation.

Sami started talking about the culture of generosity in Iraq and gave this illustration: many individuals have approached him about hosting our American delegation. Some want generously want to take us to a restaurant and buy us a meal. The restaurant might be even a five-star rated establishment but you will still order only one meal each when you are there. Other Iraqis have asked to host us in their homes. Even though our delegation is only 7 foreigners and are accompanied by as many as 7 additional MPT members, one host had made enough food to serve 100 people! That is abundance. The host not only has welcomed us into his home, already a gesture of honor and respect, but in providing so much food so no one could possibly go hungry communicates a measure of abundance which flows out of his hospitality.

The host and his family did not eat with us – they waited until his honored guests had their fill and only then, as we gathered in another room for fruit, sweets, and tea, did the family members eat. Sami tells us that other Iraqis are vying for the opportunity to host us, outdoing one another. Here in a land without reliable energy from the national grid or clean enough water from the local treatment plant one might expect a culture of scarcity and protecting what you’ve gotten already. Of course there is some of that; Iraqis are humans and humans often fall short of the goals set by themselves and others.

We witnessed the flip side to abundance as we stopped to visit the tomb of the Prophet Ezekiel of Hebrew Bible fame. It is located in a small town between Hilla and Najaf. The grab for power and the use of authority to exercise that power over others depends on scarcity rather than abundance. After walking through the souk to get to the path to get to the site where the bones of the Old Testament prophet, exiled to Babylon, were buried, our group was halted by an Iraqi policeman who told us we couldn’t enter. After an animated back and forth between Sami, Ishan (an MPT member) and the three policeman who gathered, Sami tells us we must leave for our own security.

After returning to the bus, Sami tells us the policeman noted there were foreigners in our group and this local policeman wanted to exercise his authority by being able to tell us “No!” The excuse given was that the tomb was under repair and they were afraid we’d take pictures and make it look like the Iraqis weren’t preserving this historical site properly. Sami speculated however that the real reason might be because he saw foreigners and we might be Jews because many of the foreigners visiting are Jews. Despite all the deference given to “People of the Book” by those promoting inter-faith dialog, many ordinary Iraqis, just like typical Americans, are often influenced by negative stereotypes promoted by the media or politicians.

Another classic example of power rather than generosity/abundance was very evident at the ruins of Babylon. Across the Euphrates River, on a hill overlooking the partially excavated site of one of the most famous cities in the world, is a palace constructed by Saddam Hussein. That megalomaniac fancied himself as the new Nebuchadnezzar, and he promoted himself as the Lion of Babylon. After all, he had much of the wall of the city rebuilt during his reign to the dismay and scorn of real archeologists who wrote off the work as inauthentic. Even some of the bricks are inscribed with Saddam’s handwriting in a way to mimic the real bricks that have writing dating back to Nebuchadnezzar’s age. For Saddam, ruling a country with an iron fist wasn’t enough – he imagined himself as an historical figure. Maybe he is correct: he’s now viewed historically as someone who produced great and lasting danger and destruction to his own country.  

But let us return to abundance. Sami is a great storyteller. He regaled us with an account of a US soldier and a Najafi civilian resident. After an encounter at a checkpoint, the man from Najaf invited the American soldier to visit him in his home – provided he came without his uniform or his gun. When the American arrived, the Najafi invited others of his friends to come meet the American. They clambered to invite him into their own homes – again with the same conditions, no weapons, no uniform. He was feted with tea and the Iraqi hospitality and he left realizing that “the enemy” was just like himself. When the soldier returned to his barracks, he told his fellow troops about his experience and he was quickly disciplined and removed from that base. If you question who is the enemy, you can no longer be trusted to follow orders is the presumption made by officers in charge. After all, if the enemy is one you can break bread with, they actually become human rather than stereotypes. Thus abundance, generosity acted upon becomes the heart and soul of nonviolence.

Back in Iraq

Day One: Back in Iraq, 10 years later. By Steve Clemens November 9, 2012

I had left Iraq just 3 months before the US war-of-choice began in March 2003. My experience with the Iraq Peace Team was powerful and life-changing because I was able to act on my faith rather than my fears. So this land between the Tigris and Euphrates has a special place in my heart.

Once again, we are overwhelmed with hospitality. As soon as we entered the Najaf airport terminal building after our 2 ½ hour flight from Istanbul, I immediately recognized the broad, effusive smile of Sameera, a member of the Muslim Peacemaker Team who had traveled to the US several years ago with the first Iraqi delegation from Najaf. They came bearing an invitation for Minneapolis to become a Sister City with Najaf and Sameera was one of the three women in that delegation of 14. She spoke very little English (about as much as my pitiful attempts at Arabic) but one always knew she was overflowing with love and peace by her warm smile and the way she embraced other women.

Sameera is still a typical Shia Muslim woman from one of the most conservative cities in Iraq. When she arrived in Minneapolis, she didn’t offer her hand to men in greeting because that was to her upbringing a culturally inappropriate thing to do. But by the end of the two and a half weeks in the Twin Cities, she shook my hand and thru the interpretation of Dr. Askouri, another delegation member whose spoke fluent English, she told me she wanted me to come visit Najaf. My response at the time to her and the others who invited me to come to their hometown was, “I’ll have to wait until the U.S. withdraws its occupation forces first.”

Well, with the exception of some military guards in the Green Zone and several consulates, some military trainers for the Iraqi Army, and still many military “contractors”, the U.S. troops are gone. So I was free to come as an unarmed (and without a security detail escort) civilian ready to engage in citizen-to-citizen diplomacy.  Apparently, that diplomacy involves a lot of food! (More on that later.)

Besides Sameera, I also noted the friendly smiles of Hiba from the Governor’s office and Ali and Nasir from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry Office in Najaf lined up to greet us along with my dear friend and peacemaker, Sami Rasouli – the prime instigator and encourager of the Sister City relationship. Sami had returned to his original hometown in September after he and his wife Suad welcomed their new daughter into their family while in the US for 3 months this summer. Sami had helped arrange our flights and now was there to guide us through the process to secure our visas needed for our 12 day visit.

After being escorted to a separate, quieter waiting room, as we continued to greet one another, the Iraqis unfurled a huge banner welcoming us. And then a second banner! Sami told us the whole city is buzzing with the news of our visit – even though none of us could pass as dignitaries or even elected officials!

After collecting our luggage and getting our passports stamped, we were escorted out into the 80+ degree heat (now about 8:30 AM) to the awaiting SUVs which will drive us to the Governor’s Guest House where we will stay as his honored guests. It is quite a shock to learn it is one of many former palaces built for Saddam Hussein, now deposed but not easily forgotten. We’d prefer to stay in more humble abodes (and will do some home-stays with local Iraqis) during part of our visit but it is impossible to turn down such offers of genuine hospitality.

At the Guest House we are given a bag with some dried figs and canned nuts “to hold us over” if we were still hungry from our 31 hour-in-transit experience with 9 time zone changes. Not being a seasoned world-traveler, my body-clock is thoroughly confused – but I’m not hungry. But as soon as we are given our assigned, spacious rooms, we are reminded that there will be “breakfast” waiting for us in the restaurant on the level below our rooms. It is 10 AM by the time we begin to eat the fresh Iraqi bread (one of my favorite memories of my stay in 2002), cheeses, jellies, and other assorted foods – and the requisite hot tea, this time sweetened to our own desires rather than pre-sweetened.

We are given some time to freshen up and/or crash on our beds before being invited for lunch at 1 PM. We eat outside in the shade and feast on freshly-caught carp cooked on the grill. Tasty and nourishing! I ask Joan Haan, a good friend and fellow delegate to share the huge portion with me, knowing that we’ve already been told to gather at 5 PM to ride into the “old city” of Kufa for dinner and a welcome reception with the Governor of the Province of Najaf. Looks like we’re getting a real “taste” of citizen diplomacy.

It is hard to say in just a few words why I am here. I want to say, “I’m sorry,” for the actions of my government. I want to work on re-establishing relationships between Iraqis and Americans which forgo weapons and domination. I want to visit new friends in their homes and listen deeply to their stories, to weep and laugh with them. Most of all, I want to look my fellow peacemakers from the Muslim Peacemaker Team in the eyes and say, thank you for your courage and your witness. How can we work together to build a peaceful and just society?

I brought along with me a copy of the book by Greg Barrett just released before our trip, The Gospel of Rutba: War, Peace, and the Good Samaritan Story in Iraq. It retells the account of three of my friends injured as they left Iraq during the days of Shock and Awe – Christian Peacemaker Team members befriended and healed by “the enemy”. Their story, embellished by their return trip several years later to thank their saviors, reminds us of the importance of this work of reconciliation. I look forward to 12 days of connecting in ways that transcend “diplomacy” and help us re-connect with our common humanity and our relationship as sisters and brothers. These Iraqis are looking for partners; they have much to teach me when I’m ready to learn. “Inshalla”, God willing, as my Muslim friends remind me.  

   

The Face of "The Enemy"

The Face of “The Enemy” by Steve Clemens. October 6, 2009

I was their designated driver; thirteen Iraqis from Najaf, a holy city to the Shi’a Muslims, had come to the Twin Cities. They were accompanied by my friend, the founder of the Iraqi-led Muslim Peacemaker Team (MPT), Sami Rasouli.

Sami, the former owner of Sinbad’s, a popular restaurant on Minneapolis’ “Eat Street”, Nicolette Avenue, chose to return to his native country five years ago, after the war was launched by the Bush regime. As a one-man peace team, he worked at rebuilding bridges and healing the psychic wounds that are always the byproduct of war. Speaking both English and Arabic fluently, Sami told us he was like a “salmon swimming upstream”, returning to his place of birth – but unlike the salmon, he did not plan to return to spawn and die but hopefully return to help us, his American friends, get an accurate description of this war from the inside.

Although this committed peacemaker did not return to die, there were several close calls in encountering trigger-happy and nervous US troops at check points. Rasouli’s hearty sense of humor, coupled with quick thinking, came to his aid on more than one occasion. But it is not only the occupying force that presents a threat to this erstwhile reconciler – he also faced threats and suspicions from Iraqis eager to throw off the yoke of an oppressive occupation, viewing someone who is willing to talk to the “enemy” as a possible collaborator.

Sami Rasouli told me how inspired he was when he encountered members of the Christian Peacemaker Team in Iraq – especially his new-found friend and mentor, Tom Fox, a gentle Quaker pacifist who was later martyred after being held captive by insurgent forces for many months. It is difficult these days to use the pejorative term “martyr” because it has been bandied about by so many as an honorific title for those who use their bodies in an attempt to kill others. Tom Fox only armed himself with love and compassion and the desire to see the end of all violence. His death shook Sami Rasouli to the core – but also had the effect of steeling his resolve to carry on his friend’s work for peace and reconciliation.

In founding the Muslim Peacemaker Team, Rasouli hoped to remind his fellow Muslims about their own tradition of commitment to peacemaking and salaam. Where better to model this commitment to reconciliation than within his own war-torn homeland? To support his work and to help others struggling to feed their families, Sami decided to bring original Iraqi art work back when he returned to the U.S. When the art was sold, half of the proceeds would help to fund the work of MPT, the other half would be given to the artist in Iraq.

But peacemaking can’t happen in a vacuum. There must be other life-sustaining programs to give people hope. So Rasouli initiated two additional programs: Water For Peace and Letters For Peace. For life and health, there needs to be clean drinking water and the MPT, which now included others committed to peacemaking besides Sami Rasouli, decided to ask groups and individuals outside of Iraq to help fund water filters to be placed in schools and hospitals in Najaf, the area where MPT was active. This idea built on the work of the U.S.-based Veterans For Peace effort that had begun under the economic sanctions in the late 1990s to help rebuild and equip water treatment plants in southern Iraq. Under the sanctions, Iraq could not purchase certain replacement parts so Vets for Peace chose to commit civil disobedience in the name of compassion and justice.

But Rasouli and his MPT colleagues couldn’t tackle large water treatment facilities so they concentrated on finding small water filter units which could be placed directly on sites where needed. After finding someone who could supply small and medium sized units for schools and hospitals, MPT discovered that they wouldn’t work without a reliable source of power. Since much of Iraq still has only intermittent electricity since the war began, they decided that they would also need to purchase small generators to power the water filter equipment.

Also, to help foster hope and reconciliation, Rasouli decided to ask school children in both the U.S. and Iraq to write to each other about their lives, hopes, dreams, and realities. Thus, Letters For Peace was born. School kids who now had clean drinking water could write and thank their American counterparts who donated money to purchase the filters. Art for Peace, Water for Peace, Letters for Peace – why not cities for peace?

Sami Rasouli, ever eager to continue building bridges between the two countries he called “home”, asked the U.S.-based Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project (IARP) to explore a more formal relationship between his two home towns, Minneapolis and Najaf. The Sister City program initiated by President Eisenhower in the 1950s as a vehicle for people-to-people “diplomacy” was just the right fit. It encourages citizens of both cities to break down barriers and stereotypes through social, cultural, and economic exchanges. Minneapolis already has 9 other Sister City relationships with cities around the global but none with a city in the Middle East or which is predominately Muslim. After a year of planning and collaboration with other civic, religious, political, and economic groups, the City Council of Minneapolis unanimously voted to become a Sister City with Najaf, Iraq at the end of July.

IARP and the MPT didn’t wait for the resolution to pass before deciding to plan for a visit from representatives from Najaf. Planning began before the start of 2009 and by Spring a planning committee included representatives from the University of Minnesota, Women Against Military Madness, St. Joan of Arc Church, and Friends For a Nonviolent World among others.

The University of MN helped overcome the biggest hurdle – securing visas – by making their visit to campus a central part of the trip and helping with the paperwork for “J visas”. Even though we may want to foster better relations with Iraqi citizens, the process in place for Iraqis to travel to the U.S. is extremely difficult unless one lives in the Green Zone and collaborates with the Occupation Forces. It was only the day before the delegation left Najaf that the final visas were issued to several delegates after the helpful intervention of Minneapolis’ Congressman Keith Ellison’s office. Transport to the Twin Cities was further complicated by the delegation being held by Homeland Security in Washington, DC’s airport for four hours -causing them to miss a connecting flight.

The Najaf delegation included doctors, University deans and professors, city council members, engineers, and members of Najaf’s Chamber of Commerce. Several spoke English well enough to have a conversation, including one who often corrected the interpreters during the two-week stay. Delegates were hosted in pairs in the homes of local volunteers who were recruited by local peace activist Marie Braun. Also included in the schedule was a three night stay at Hospitality Place, a retreat house in Circle Pines generously donated for a short respite in the middle of the trip so all the delegates could be in one place for a few evenings.

The schedule planned was ambitious and diverse. Meetings were scheduled with the Minneapolis Mayor and City Council, two days at different locations on the University of MN campus – both St. Paul and both banks of the Minneapolis campus, a boat trip on Lake Minnetonka, a cook-out/barbeque, the Mall of America, a tour of the State Capitol, some went to a battered woman’s shelter, others to The Loft literary center, a private and a public school, an alternative lifestyle community in Wisconsin as well as a tour of an Amish farm in Lanesboro. Some went to the Como Zoo, others appeared on Almanac and Belahdan, two locally produced TV shows. There was an Arab Cultural Night at a local church as well as the dedication of a new peace bridge at a Minneapolis park. A Tour of the Walker Art Center and Sculpture Garden was included as well as a tour of Native American artifacts at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts led by curator Joe Horse Capture. The folks at Meet Minneapolis, a group promoting visits and tourism in the Twin Cities sponsored and led a bus tour of both cities where I saw sights I’d never seen in my 20 years here.

Augsburg College, the Eastside Food Coop, the Chamber of Commerce, and MN Advocates for Human Rights were also on the schedule. But the stop which seemed most important on the agenda was the meeting with Congressman Keith Ellison. Spending an hour and a half with them, the 5^th District Congressman not only listened and took notes but also asked one of his staff members to take video of the dialog so their message could get wider exposure. Delegates explained their concern about Chapter 7 of the United Nations which has placed restrictions on what ultimate control Iraqis can assume in their own nation while under American occupation. They spoke passionately about their need and desire for Iraqi control over the rebuilding of their infrastructure and control over their resources, especially oil and water.

Because of the weakness of the Iraqi government under the sanctions and now the occupation, the neighboring countries of Turkey, Syria, and Iran have diverted water from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers which are essential for both drinking water and agriculture in Iraq. Although Iraq should have abundant wealth due to their oil reserves, delegates complained they have little say over rebuilding projects under the occupation and decried the “brain drain” which has occurred during the past 19 years under sanctions and war. Many of the highly trained people needed to run hospitals, schools and universities, repair infrastructure like roads, bridges, electrical plants, and water treatment facilities have been killed, uprooted as refugees, or fled the country during this period. Some expressed they felt the brain drain was a deliberate strategy to keep Iraq politically and economically weak.

One of the delegates was forthright about the more recent repression of women in Iraq who had enjoyed many more freedoms and status than they experience now. I could see the discomfort of some of the other delegates, especially those aligned with the dominate political party in power today in Iraq, at hearing this delegate expound on the plight of women today. It gave me a brief insight (despite my lack of Arabic) into some of the diversity included in this delegation.

It was evident that Congressman Ellison was engaged and energized by this meeting. He responded positively to the invitation for him to visit Najaf on his next visit to Iraq and he said he’d work with the State Department to facilitate that. The greatest spoken desire of the delegates during the two weeks was for concrete, specific, tangible commitments to partnership and help in rebuilding their city and country. Now that we are “sisters”, they would say, you need to help us while we are in need.

But their visit was not one of demands but one of pleading. Over and over we were reminded that this war had destroyed and devastated their nation and we had a moral and legal obligation to restore it – but the message was conveyed not out of anger but of expectation. They knew Americans to be a generous and compassionate people, distinct from its government; hoping that the military tanks and weapons could be quickly replaced with skilled professionals with resources under the direction of and with the cooperation of Iraqi leadership.

I’d like to share a few other observations. My only previous exposure to Iraq was a two week presence in Baghdad and Basra just three months before the war at the end of 2002. Baghdad, even under Saddam was more culturally diverse (dare one say more “liberal” in some respects?) than Najaf which has been a cultural center and Holy City for the Shi’a branch of Islam. In Baghdad, on the streets, there were many women who walked around without head coverings or at least less modest dress than you would have found in Shi’a dominated areas. Because Saddam Hussein’s regime gave preference and power to minority Sunni Muslims under his Baathist rule, most Shi’a were glad to see the U.S. intervention to topple his government.

But that replacement of a dictator came at a fearful price with the breakdown of the society and structures in its aftermath coupled with the incompetence of the occupation to either provide order or any quality reconstruction. These Iraqis witnessed the incredible waste of U.S. tax dollars in bribes, corruption, and incompetence – leaving them physically much worse off than under Saddam’s repression. At least before they had reliable electricity and somewhat potable drinking water. Now without working sewer systems, the water contamination issues are huge. A delegate told me she routinely has only 6 hours of electricity today – and it has been that way for going on six years now! So the welcome toppling of Saddam has been bittersweet with one type of oppression replacing the other. Even so, some delegates expressed reluctance to the idea of U.S. troops pulling out – fearing that in its present weak state (militarily), other nations might take advantage of them. It was a perspective I hadn’t considered.

One of the delegates with his PhD in nuclear physics told us he was one of only 16 left in the whole country, down from 350 before the war. The others have been “assassinated”, killed, or fled the country. He talked numerous times when he had the chance to educate others about the use of depleted uranium in Iraq during both the 1991 war as well as the present war. He explained about both the heavy metal toxicity as well as the radioactive contamination caused when the pyrophoric shells release the water-soluble uranium trioxides which pollute the ground water and the non-soluble uranium dioxide particles which lay on the ground and get distributed during the frequent dust storms, scattering these microscopic radioactive particles far and wide. I couldn’t help but think of the Biblical passage of “reaping the whirlwind” when he talked about the problems caused by depleted uranium use. He described the frightening rise in cancers and birth defects in Iraq since these weapons were used and the medical doctors along on the delegation confirmed the scientist’s conclusion about the causal effect likely between these and exposure to the depleted uranium.

We faced cultural and religious differences we hadn’t anticipated. We knew that most of the delegates would prefer halal meat and asked our host families to provide it if they were including meat in any of their meals. But we assumed that many of the restaurants we planned to go to which served Middle Eastern foods would also have halal meat – some did, others didn’t. We knew use of alcohol was also forbidden for them and sought to avoid eating places that promoted it but, again, didn’t realize the strong feelings of some in the group that if a restaurant served any alcohol, it “contaminated” the rest of the food. Fortunately, in the process we found some excellent restaurants that served both halal dishes and no alcohol. I would have loved to listen in on the conversations which must have ensued by the trip to the Mall of America – to both the culture of excess as well as the marketing of sexuality at places like Victorias Secret or Fredricks of Hollywood. I have my doubts about how soon one might find such stores in Najaf.

In selecting host families, we requested that there be no dogs and no pork products in the homes. Special plastic pitchers were purchased for sanitary reasons in the home bathrooms. Our over-booked schedules frequently did not provide adequate time or places for delegates to have for their prayers but we adjusted on the fly. I’m sure some guests at the Como Zoo might have been surprised to see two men in suits, barefooted, bowing and kneeling in prayer near the sea lion exhibit! Others seemed content to pray in less conspicuous fashion. I’m sure we’ll hear stories of cultural faux pas over the coming weeks from our host families.

There were times when the Iraqis talked rapidly among themselves, their voices raising and seemingly the conversations heated up. But not knowing what they were discussing, I couldn’t tell if there were sharp disagreements or whether it was merely a culturally different way of communicating than I’m used to in this country.

We had two “farewell” dinners, the original scheduled in advance when we thought the return flight to Najaf would be on Friday, October 2 and the second when we discovered the travel agent in Najaf had booked the return flights for the 3^rd. At the first farewell, we were joined by host families and planning team members, packed into a cozy space at St. Martin’s Table. It was wonderful to see the bonds that had developed between Twin Citians and our guests. Appreciations flowed, hugs and hand shakes were exchanged, bridges were crossed and barriers were dismantled. It was in incarnational event for The Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project. It is only a beginning. There is much hard work that must continue.

But a few of us were blessed with a second farewell dinner the following evening, this time at the Hamdi Restaurant in Midtown. I took the opportunity to tell the delegates that they had told us they wanted to return to Iraq with tangible commitments. My “gift” to them, I explained with the help of Sami Rasouli translating, was my arrest that very morning at Alliant Techsystems for trespass when I refused to leave after asking to meet with the weapons maker CEO, wanting to ask him to stop making and selling depleted uranium munitions. I told my new friends that my arrest was a tangible sign to them that I will continue to work, nonviolently, on their behalf (and on behalf of the whole world) to stop the use of these deadly weapons.

One of the doctors in the group pulled me aside and told me how sad he was that I was risking going to jail. I’m sure he knew some who had been jailed under Saddam’s regime. I tried to explain to him a little of the history of civil disobedience and how going to jail can help build the movement. While as a doctor he desperately wants the scourge of depleted uranium contamination to end, he also does not want to see his new friend suffer. We need each other to create a world that is better for both of us. The visit from our new “sisters” is a first step on that journey. Some may remember Najaf several years ago was home to one of the fiercest insurgent groups, the Madhi Army, led by Muqtada al-Sadr. When we see the face of one who may have been an “enemy”, when we sit down and break bread together and listen to one another, we can recognize our common humanity and strive to become friends. I give thanks for their courage to visit the nation that attacked them.

[More on The Iraqi & American Reconciliation Project can be found at: www.reconciliationproject.org ]