RNA – Unfortunately, positive Muslim stories don’t happen to make the news, neither do positive fatwas by leading Muslim scholars.
Two weeks ago, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, Iraq, issued a fatwa calling for Iraqis to help refugees in their country.
Transmitted via his representative in a Friday sermon, Dr. Abbas Kadhim translated the full fatwa on Twitter:
“Due to increase of internally displaced people and shortage of resources, we call on all respected Iraqi citizens, to contribute all they can to reduce the suffering. This is the best way to be close to God. It is also a means to unite the people in times of crisis. Giving aid to the internally displaced people is similar, in God’s regard, to support of fighters against terror. Not to mention that these IDPs are our brothers and sisters, our fellow citizens.”
In response to the fatwa, 1,000 large trucks loaded with food and supplies left south and central Iraqi cities to IDP locations, Dr. Abbas Kadhim says.
While much of the media continues to try and push a sectarian narrative in Iraq, this fatwa is a wonderful reminder that the leadership – both Sunni and Shi’ah – care about unity, and more importantly, humanity.
According to an IDMC report in December 2015, there were approximately 3.3 million displaced Iraqis in the country. A number that has no doubt risen in the past year.
112/940