A Sunni-Shia marriage proves Iraqis reject sectarianism
Isra’a Khalid, IRAQI MINISTRY OF DEFENSE
The terrorists have failed to sow the seeds of sectarian strife among Iraqis. Iraqis have always lived together in tolerance, accepting the numerous ethnic groups and minorities who have lived peacefully for centuries in the land of Mesopotamia. This generous and loving spirit was exemplified by the recent wedding of a Soldier from Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS), Fahad Obeid Al-Refai, and his young bride from Mosul. This was no ordinary wedding. The union of Fahad — a Shia from the southern Iraq city of Nasiriya — and Asma’ — a Sunni from the northern city of Mosul — achieved in its own way a strategic victory against Daesh.
Despite the differences in culture and environments between his native Nasiriya and Mosul, Fahad fell in love with the city and its people. In fact, these differences never crossed his mind, and he never even considered that the cities’ people belonged to different sects. Instead, Fahad saw that Mosul residents accepted Iraqi forces with the same kindness and authenticity found in the sons of Nasiriya.
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Fahad realized that the citizens of Mosul were victims of these killers in Daesh, the same killers who brutally massacred his brothers in Camp Speicher and Baghdad. These were the same criminals who bombed houses of worship and murdered people based on their religious affiliation. Fahad saw the kindness of Nasiriya’s people in Mosul residents, who reflected the same generosity as the Al Souq and Kurma areas. Mosul’s people reminded Fahad of the purity of the Al-Gharraf River in Nasiriya, which the famous singer Hussain Naama always mentioned in his songs: They are pure like the water. They were generous despite their lack of food, harkening to the famous Iraqi singer Dakhil Hassan’s traditional Iraqi poems, which describe the nobility of the farmers in the Al-Jibaish Marshes.
The battle to liberate the east side of Mosul was fierce. Many brave men from the special forces sacrificed themselves as martyrs. CTS Soldiers instilled fear and horror in the hearts of their Daesh enemies, but were generous and merciful to Mosul residents trapped in the fighting.
After the battle had ended and the dust settled, Fahad was able to remove his military gear, revealing the kind and handsome features of a true Sumerian gentleman. Each day, as part of his duties, he walked from house to house to ask the families what they needed.
On one such day, he made a house call that would change his life forever. Knocking on the door of one residence in the city, he heard a woman’s voice ask, “Who is it?” At the sound of her voice, he froze, speechless. The voice repeated, “Who is it?” as a young woman opened the door, eyes shyly downcast, in the manner of a well-bred Iraqi girl.
The battle-hardened Fahad stuttered as he introduced himself and asked the woman — Asma’ was her name — what her family needed.
After he left the young woman that day, Fahad couldn’t get her image or their conversation out of his mind. Asma’ was the answer to his dreams, dreams long postponed because of the nature of his duties as a CTS Soldier since 2005. Though he had confronted criminals in Najaf, fought outlaws in the battle of Solat al-Fursan, and combated Daesh in Tikrit, Ramadi, Fallujah and Mosul, he had felt for years that something was missing in his life. Now that he had met Asma’, he realized she was what he had been looking for. The visit to her family’s house had flooded his mind with intense emotions.
Over several visits, Fahad got to know Asma’ and her family, who greatly respected this southern fighter’s brave efforts to protect them from terrorists. Fahad’s own family already loved Asma’ and her family — Fahad mentioned them to his mother in every phone call. So when Fahad was ordered to travel west to liberate other parts of the city, he was gratified to receive many phone calls from Asma’ and her father seeking reassurance that he was safe amid intensifying explosions and fighting. Encouraged by his mother’s prayers and his father’s support, Fahad promised Asma’ he would ask for her hand in marriage as soon as west Mosul was liberated.
“After the counterterrorism forces entered our neighborhood … liberating us from Daesh’s tyranny, a special bond formed between the area’s residents and the unit’s fighters,” Asma’s father told Iraqi news service Al Mada. “We knew Fahad, and he had formed a special bond with my children.”
After her father gave his approval, the families celebrated the engagement in Nasiriya, Mosul and Baghdad, where the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service is headquartered. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi held a large wedding for the couple at Baghdad’s Babylon Hotel on February 9, 2017, inviting government and military officials to celebrate this symbolic marriage.
This story of love and national unity had a huge impact, celebrated in Nasiriya and Mosul alike. This marriage reflects Iraqis’ goodwill, forgiveness, desire for peaceful coexistence and rejection of violence. These elements of Iraqi society have roots that extend back in history to the civilizations of Ur, Uruk and Babylon. The Iraqi people cannot be diverted by the ideology of extremism and discrimination. Iraqis defeated terrorism, and this great Iraqi wedding has defeated Daesh’s sectarianism along with its poisonous and malicious ideology.
As Fahad told Al Sumaria News after the wedding: “It is an honor for me to … send the message that there is no difference between Iraqis.”
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