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Newsletter #294

November 30 - December 6, 2008

What's New on SUSRIS

SUSRIS EXCLUSIVE - The Hajj in Perspective: A Conversation with David Long

"..The Hajj is one of the five pillars or the foundation of Islam and therefore it is the obligation of everyone who is physically and financially able to do so to make the Hajj once in their lifetimes. Pilgrimages to Makkah actually predate Islam, but the Hajj is considered by all Muslims to be divinely inspired by God as set down in the Qur'an and the Sunna. It is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, the others being: the profession of faith - "there is no God but God and Mohammed is the messenger of God"; Zakat or charity; prayer five times a day, and fasting during Ramadan. The rites are based on the instructions Muhammad gave in his Farewell Hajj just before he died. They have remained virtually unchanged to this day.."  [more]

SUSRIS EXCLUSIVE - Moving in the Right Direction - A Conversation with Ambassador Ford Fraker - Part 3

"..We’re clearly on an upward trajectory. The dark days of 9/11 are well behind us, as are the events of 2003 and 2004 in the Kingdom when there were pitched battles in the street against extremists, Westerners were targeted and killed and compounds invaded. During those years, a number of major international financial institutions and companies left the Kingdom. Both sides were deeply shocked by these events. As I said at the conference today, CIA Director, General Hayden will tell you this is the best, most productive counter terrorism partnership we have in the world, especially when you couple it with the fact that King Abdullah clearly is winning the minds and hearts battle with the populace.."  [more]

A Hajj Diary: Pelting the Pillars, Again - Part 4 - Faiza Saleh Ambah

"..Like soldiers preparing for battle, we put on our face masks, strap on our waist pouches, and count our pebbles - we need 21 today, seven for each of the Jamaraat pillars. We're told that tradition dictates that we go from the smallest obelisk to the largest. They represent the devil's three appearances before Abraham. Pilgrims throw pebbles to send away Satan in the same way Abraham is said to have done. There's a sense of excitement and adventure and danger as we move slowly behind a camp employee carrying a banner with the name of our camp, The House of Faith. "If he drops the banner, I'll pick it up and continue walking," jokes Reem. "You guys just follow me.".."  [more]

A Hajj Diary: A Pilgrim Fends Off Temptation with Pebbles and Prayers - Part 3 - Faiza Saleh Ambah

"..After dawn prayers Saturday in Mina, the 10 of us squeeze into the four-wheel drive heading for Arafat, where we will spend the day in prayer until sunset. We're seated in the back and I ask my sisters Reem and Taghreed if, like me, they find our guide attractive. Reem's answer is a smile. She intones the Talbiya (the oft-repeated hajj prayer): "Here I am God. Here I am. Answering your call. Here I am, God, at your service.." "What? You mean I shouldn't even think that?" I ask. "You can think it, but then take it out of your mind," Taghreed says. "And not share it," adds Reem.."  [more]

A Hajj Diary: On Hajj, Battling Sin and Doubt - Part 2 - Faiza Saleh Ambah

"..For the next five days I'm asked to concentrate only on God. "We're not going to talk about guys, or gossip or anything," Reem warns me. "I'm going to take advantage of the next five days and I don't want the two of you to distract me," she says, but I think she means mainly me. Consider hajj a short board meeting, says my cousin Allal. "Concentrate on prayers and God and trying to be a better person during the next five days and forget everything else." As we head to our rooms to get ready for ihram (state of hajj-related sacredness; also the pilgrims' garb), she looks closely at my hands. "Is that nail polish? And on your feet too?" She shakes her head in consternation and fetches cotton and nail polish remover."  [more]

Saudi National Security and the Saudi-US Strategic Partnership - Anthony Cordesman

"The US faces major problems in restoring its reputation and strategic partnerships all over the world. Every opinion poll that has addressed the subject has shown that the last eight years have done immense damage to America's position. There are few areas, however, where US action is more urgent than in the Gulf and in dealing with Saudi Arabia. The US has now agreed to withdraw from Iraq. There never was a significant chance that Iraq would emerge as a stable strategic partner, and it is now clear that any degree of partnership will be limited and constantly subject to the uncertainties of Iraqi politics and sectarian and ethnic tensions. It has been nearly 30 years since anyone could think of Iran as a "pillar" in US security, and it is clear that even the most successful dialog with Iran will still leave the need to deter and defend against Iranian opportunism in the Gulf. The worst case is a nuclear-armed Iran that seeks some form of regional hegemony."  [more]

A Hajj Diary: The Pilgrimage to Mecca - One Woman's Journey - Part 1 - Faiza Saleh Ambah 

"..Spending a week with two million Muslims from more than 120 countries, performing rituals more ancient than Islam itself, in the largest single gathering at one place for one purpose in the world, appeals more to the journalist than the Muslim in me. I am wary of, but no less excited by, the idea of an appointment in the desert with God. Pilgrims performing the hajj, which starts Jan. 30 (the eighth day of the last month of the Muslim lunar year), seem to be answering a call, keeping a promise. "Here I am lord, at your service, here I am," is the chant that announces the start of the pilgrimage. As a Muslim with more questions than certainties, I wonder at the meaning of the daily rituals that make up the pilgrimage: the seven circuits around the Kaaba (the cube-shaped stone structure in the middle of the Grand Mosque) in Mecca, the reenactment of the search for water by Ishmael's mother Hagar, the march to and from the desert, and the vigil on Mount Mercy on the plains of Arafat, where the last verses of the Koran were revealed.."  [more]

A Very Critical Time: Examining Iran and Iraq (AUSPC 2008) - Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft

"..It’s a very critical time, and the title of the conference “Transitioning the White House” is very important. Now we’re supposed to talk about Iran and Iraq, but I want to make a couple of preliminary comments because I think there’s some danger in separating the various issues of the region because they tend to spill over on each other in a variety of ways. And what I want to say is just a few words about the Palestinian peace process. I think it is a major source of the problems in the region. It’s a major source of anti-Americanism in the region. It’s a major rallying point for extremists in the region. And the solution to that problem would make a great contribution to the other issues that beset us in the region.."  [more]

Foundations for Change in the Arab World - Muna Abu Sulayman

"..These are some of the questions that we face at the foundation and I’m sure many of you on a daily basis. And in the fallout of the current global economic crisis the amount of people living in poverty is sure to skyrocket. We are going to end up paying a very high price for poverty, which is why we need to work together to find lasting global solutions to end poverty and not just fix outdated systems. The United Nations Development Program, which I am an Ambassador of, has eight millennium goals. To end poverty, to improve people’s lives, improve living conditions, and they are very well known. The eighth goal, the last one, the one that calls for global partnership for development is not as well known. Yet out of all the goals, it is the most important. Otherwise we will never be able to tackle the enormous amount of problems facing humanity. Like the rest of the world there is a growing number of Arabic mavericks. I hate saying that word, but they really are mavericks. Businessmen who have taken the task of changing the world. And they do it through a lot of philanthropy.."   [more]

The Hajj and Its Impact on Saudi Arabia and the Muslim World - David E. Long

"Each year, 2 million Muslims perform the Hajj, or Great Pilgrimage to Makkah. One of the Five Pillars of Islam, the Hajj is required of all believers once in their lifetimes provided they are physically, mentally and financially able. For the duration of the Hajj and the traditional visit to al-Madinah afterward, the Saudi government must insure that the Hajjis are provided with adequate housing (mainly in tents), food, water, health and sanitation, ground transportation, and public safety and security."  [more]

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