On the occasion of the anniversary of the Prophet’s birth and under the slogan (Islamic and national unity, challenges of the present and future prospects), the University of Basrah hosted the first conference of Islamic unity in the governorate, which was held by the Al-Ghari Foundation for Islamic Knowledge and in cooperation with the Sunni Endowment and a number of religious and cultural institutions in Basra Governorate and in the presence of the Director of the Sunni Endowment Sheikh Muhammad Al-Mulla, Basra Police Chief, and a number of academics, scholars and tribal sheikhs.
The conference included various activities emphasizing the importance of Islamic and national unity and the role of the religious authority in rationalizing religious and political discourse and maintaining social cohesion. The Iraq Foundation for Proximity and Dialogue had a research paper entitled Peaceful Coexistence with the Different Other in the Muhammadiyah State, which was delivered by Dr. Bakr Riyad Al-Taha.
The conference came out with a set of recommendations, including a call to all Iraqis, with their various religious and political orientations, to national unity, cohesion and fraternity, and to emphasize the role of the supreme religious authority in preserving Iraq and the cohesion of its people as it was and will remain the safety valve for all Iraqis. The conferees called on the preachers and religious scholars to present a conscious and mature discourse with the need to keep pace with the developments of the stage, open up to the youth class and address them in a civilized manner commensurate with their minds and culture.
