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America, Iraq and the Value of Religion

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For Immediate Release
Contact: Ari Geller or Samantha Friedman, Rabinowitz/Dorf Communications, 202-265-3000, ari@rabinowitz-dorf.com or samantha@rabinowitz-dorf.com

Washington June 23 – On this Sunday’s "State of Belief," The Interfaith Alliance Foundation’s show on Air America Radio, Rev. Welton Gaddy shares discussions with members of the Council of 100 Leaders of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East. The annual conference was held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt this year.

 

Welton talks with Rabbi David Rosen, one of the most prominent Jewish leaders in the Middle East, about the role of religion in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and in Iraq.  Rosen says Iraq is a very dangerous situation right now and America needs to realize the importance of religion and to not “disregard the religious dimension and understand if you don’t want religion to be part of the problem, which it has become, you have to make it part of the solution.”

 

Dr. Mustafa Ceric, The Grand Mufti of Bosnia, joins Welton and cautions the United States against being isolationist or pulling away from world politics.  The former Imam from Chicago gives a special to message to Americans saying, “Don’t lose hope in your effort to do good to the world and don’t lose your sense of loving to be good.”

The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas.  The impartial and non-profit forum was incorporated as a foundation in 1971, and is based in Geneva, Switzerland. Within the Forum, Rev. Gaddy is one of 20 international religious leaders on the Council of 100 Leaders, a group created to improve dialogue and understanding between the Western and Islamic worlds.

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The Interfaith Alliance celebrates religious freedom by championing individual rights, promoting policies that protect both religion and democracy, and uniting diverse voices to challenge extremism. Founded in 1994, the Interfaith Alliance has 185,000 members across the country from 75 faith traditions as well as those without a faith tradition. For more information visit www.interfaithalliance.org.