No to Wars, Yes to Dialogue, Diplomacy, Respect, Responsibility and Human Integrity!
Detroit area faith community stands against war with Iran and calls for peace in the Middle East!
Return to diplomacy needed to avert needless war
DEARBORN HEIGHTS, Michigan- Faith leaders from across metro-Detroit gathered Thursday Jan 9, 2020, in the Islamic House of Wisdom to call for calm in the face of escalating tensions between Iran and the United States following a drone attack that killed two Iraqi and Iranian generals and a missile attack on an Iraqi air base housing American troops. The Christian and Muslim clerics are praying for a diplomatic solution that will prevent further bloodshed.
The speakers included Imam Mohammed Ali Elahi, Rev. Jill Hardt-Zundel, Pastor, Central United Methodist Church of Detroit, Dawud Walid, Executive Director of the Council on American Islamic Relations of Michigan (CAIR-MI), Nasser Beydoun the president of Arab American Civil Rights, Osama Siblini of Arab American News and Shireen Smalley manager of NNAAC Organizational Development!
The following is the transcript of Imam Elahi’s opening speech in the beginning of the Press Conference!
Yesterday, I listened to the speech of our commander in chief, who is known to be commander in contradiction, confusion and chaos!
Gladly he backed off from his previous statements such, as threatening to attack Iran's cultural sites, which is a war crime.
He expressed an interest to work with Iran to fight ISIS together.
He said he wanted Iran to be great and prosperous.
He said the US is ready to embrace peace with Iran.
He said we have a great military, but it doesn’t mean we have to use it.
I wish we could trust this president’s words.
In the same speech, he promised additional punishing economic sanctions and called the deal and diplomacy that were working foolish just because it was signed by his predecessor and the rest of world powers.
He asked other countries to break away from the nuclear deal.
All these contradictions in the presidents’ expressions and actions show one thing! My way or highway! Me, myself and I.
He wants to eats his cake and has it too.
This is nothing but ego, arrogance, greed, selfishness, misleading and petty political gambling.
It is the absence of wisdom, trust, respect, responsibility, moral leadership and justice.
The new year was a good time for peace, reconciliation and forgiveness, but the president started the new year with a war that made the Iraqis who are hosting our troops extremely angry!
The president also angered Ayatollah Sistani, the spiritual leader of Iraq, who is known for being very wise and moderate.
There was no need to start 2020 with attacking the bases of Iraqi anti-ISIS forces and killing 25 innocent members of Iraqi popular mobilization!
This bloody attack followed with killing of the commander of Iraqi popular forces general Abu Mahdi al-Muhandes and his guest general Soleimani, who arrived at Baghdad airport on January 3rd.
The government of Iraq stated that Soleimani was its guest for a diplomatic mission.
It called the murder of Soleimani a political assassination and concluded that it was an attack on Iraq's sovereignty and a violation of international law.
The president tried to justify the attack but even some Republican senators who attended the security briefing by the Trump administration, left the meeting more decided to limit the president’s war power (which is the discussion of this morning at the US Congress today).
Republican Senators Mike Lee and Rand Paul called the strike justifications "insulting, un-American, Un-Constitutional and wrong."
It reminds us of the historic sentence from John Adam we are “A government of laws not men”
Mr. President:
You said you have deep respect for the Iranians, they are remarkable people with great heritage.
Then, why did you lose the minds and hearts of those great people?
Did you see the flood of millions and millions of Iranians followed the funeral of their general all over the country?
What did you really achieve by that attack, militarily, socially, politically or morally?
You created more anti-Americanism and more negative feeling and hate for your administration. That is so sad and unfortunate.
Is adding more sanction, pain, punishment, travel ban, murdering the Iranian children in the hospitals because of your economic war, considered love and respect for someone?
Please change your policies towards Iran, sanction, military operation won’t make them to submit to your unwise polices and practices. Its insanity to repeat the same thing and expect different results.
As an Iranian-American who love this country and care about peace, prosperity and security in America, Iran, Iraq, the Middle East and the entire world, I ask you to open the doors for dialogue but with respect, integrity, justice and win- win deal!
Time is short, and we hope when you leave the White House, you leave it with a good legacy.
An absolute majority of Iranians want peace with America, an absolute majority of Americans want peace with Iran.
When you open the windows of dialogue and diplomacy with your words, don’t close the doors with your deeds.
What really work are: weapon of wisdom, not violence, harmony not hate, honesty not deception, morality not just money, humility not arrogance, empathy not imposing pain and fear, compassion not killing, grace not greed.
I suggest you send a message of condolences for all the families who lost their loved ones in the last ten days of strikes and expressing regret for all terrible bloodsheds and economic war that has become a murdering machine, killing so many innocents in Iran, especially the kids in children hospitals who can’t buy their medication out of your oppressive sanctions!
I am sure If you act with love and logic, the Iranian people would respond you the same way.
I hope your presidency won’t be a total moral failure and you be able to pass this historic test of Oval Office, so you would be remembered and honored for centuries to come.
As this month we would honor the anniversary of MLK in Dearborn, lets remember his memorable statement:
“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools”
Thank you all for your patience!