A document signed in June by many leaders of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood is probably an attempt to deal with rising tensions between the Sunni and Shiite communities in the United States. USA Today recently reported on these tensions, signs of which include vandalism of Shiite mosques in the Detroit area, accusations of being rebuffed in each other’s mosques, and factional disputes on college campuses. The publication of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) reports that in June, the major organizations representing the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood held a meeting to deal with such tensions oust of which came a document on Sunni-Shiite relations and an Iraqi peace initiative:
On June 8, 2007, major American Muslim organizations met at CAIR’s Washington office to mend Shi’ah-Sunni relations and explore how they can help end the tragic occupation and civil war in Iraq. This meeting gave birth to the American Muslim Iraq Peace Initiative (AMIPI). Participants included CAIR, HIT, MAS, ISNA, and MPAC. Attendee Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) lent his enthusiastic support to the initiative. On July 1 1 , the coalition met again at HIT, at which time FAAIR, the Minaret of Freedom Institute, the Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations in the Washington Area, the Manassas Mosque, American Muslims for Constructive Engagement, UMMA, AMA, and other organizations joined the initiative. The AMIPI Steering Committee formally adopted the initiative and adopted the “National Muslim Code of Honor,” which delineates key principles for Shi’ah-Sunni relations. This document is based on similar agreements signed by leaders in Orange County, CA, and Detroit, Ml. The following participants signed the document: Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad (the Minaret of Freedom), Muthanna Hanooti (FAAIR), Agha Said (AMA/AMT), Maqsood Ahmed, Khalid Iqbal (CAIR), Ruby Amatullah, S. M. AI-Qazwini (IECOC), Sayyid M. Syeed (ISNA), AIy Abuzaakuk (CSID), Abulfazl Nahidian (the Manassas Mosque), Hussein Barzinji, Zainab Alwani (the Fiqh Council of North America), Mohamed Nimer (CAIR), Abubaker al-Shingieti (AMCE), Salam AI-Marayati (MPAC), Khalid Troudi (HIT), M. Yaqub Mirza (Sterling Management Group), Hisham Altai* (HIT), Jamal Barzinji (HIT), and Asma Hanif (CCMO).
As far as can be determined, the signers of the document included only two known Shiite Muslims- S. M. AI-Qazwini and Abulfazl Nahidian while the remainder are individuals strongly associated with the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood.
(Note: For unknown reasons, the acronym HIT is used to to refer to IIIT (International Institute of Islamic Thought)
(Source: Ethnic NewsWatch Islamic Society of North America Islamic Horizons September 2007 Muslim Code of Honor SECTION: Pg. 25 Vol. 36 No. 5)