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26 Peace Monuments Related to Islam

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1190's AD - Minaret of Jam, Ghowr Province (Afghanistan). "A UNESCO world heritage site. Forgotten to the outside world until 1957." /// "One of the great wonders of the medieval world. A very tall, heavily ornamented minaret nestled in a green valley at the edge of the Jam River. Often called the Minaret of Jam, the monument was almost a millenium ago illuminated by a torch at its top, and surrounded by a thriving town with small industries & outlying farms. What's remarkable is that the writing on the minaret & archaeological remains nearby strongly suggest that the city harbored a population of Muslims, Christians & Jews. Writing on the minaret is a detailed transcription from the Koran that celebrates the life of Mary, mother of Jesus, highlighting the connections between Islam & other religions. Nearby there is a Jewish graveyard, which is another hint that people of different religions were living peacefully together. Was this lost city once a bastion of medieval tolerance?"

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1971 - Azadi Tower / Freedom Tower, Azadi Square, Tehran (Iran). The symbol of Tehran, and marks the entrance to the city. 50 metres (148 feet) tall and is completely clad in cut marble. Built to commemorate the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire [c550-330 BC]. Originally known as the Shahyad Aryamehr ("Remembrance of the Shahs") but renamed Azadi after the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
Date? - Peace Monument, at Azadi Museum?, Azadi Tower / Freedom Tower, Azadi Square, Tehran (Iran).

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1976 - Untitled, Beirut, Lebanon. Oil on canvas by Abdel Hamid Baalbaki (208 x 370 cm). Exhibited in "The Road to Peace: Paintings in Times of War, 1975-1991," first exhibition in the new Beirut Art Center (June 17-July 14, 2009). "Curated by Saleh Barakat. Hopes to show several artistic experiences directly related to the traumatisms of the Lebanese civil war produced by Lebanese artists and executed between 1975 and 1991. The body of works, in different media and practices, reflects an art that has been seldom shown in galleries or public spaces because of its violence and despair. It was produced under pain and anger in a form of expiation, cleansing and apology from the hostility, brutality and cruelty of a mad environment. 20 artists will be exhibited to highlight a period of the Lebanese art scene that has been kept in the dark for a long time."

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After 1981 - Victory Memorial to the War of October 1973, Medinet Nasr, near Cairo (Eqypt). Sadat's tomb is under the Victory Memorial. The nearby October War Panorama was built on a suggestion made to Hosni Mubarak by Kim Il Sung of North Korea when the Egyptian president visited that country in 1983. Anwar al-Sadat [1918-1981] received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978 with Menachem Begin [1913-1992].


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1988 - Musee International de la Croix-Rouge et du Croissant-Rouge / International Red Cross & Red Crescent Museum, 17 avenue de la Paix, Geneva (Switzerland). Click here for Wikipedia article. Right image shows "The Petrified" at museum entrance. Affiliated with International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP).


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1995 - Tour de la Paix / Peace Tower, Beirut (Lebanon). Concrete tower embedding old guns and tanks. "Accumulation de chars et de canons dans du béton, 32 m de haut et d'un poids de 6 000 tonnes. La plus grande sculpture faite par Arman [1928-2005] à ce jour. Une des plus grandes sculptures contemporaines dans le monde."

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October 24, 1998 - J. William Fulbright Peace Fountain, Old Main, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas (USA). Designed by Fay Jones & Maurice Jennings. Fulbright was president of this university. Giggest contributor is Saudi Arabia. As US Senator, he chaired the Committee on Foreign Relations. Entry #28 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

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Date? - Globe Mobile Home Trailer, Rainbow Sheikh's Car Museum, Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Exactly 1 millionth the size of the actual earth. Contains 8 bedrooms. In the Guiness Book of Records for the largest operable mobile home in the world. Belongs to Sheikh Hamad bin Hamdan al Nahyan, nicknamed the Rainbow Sheikh for the rainbow he puts on the many vehicles in his collection.

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July 1, 2001 - Bethlehem Peace Center, Bethlehem (Palestine). Cultural Center owned and operated by Bethlehem Municipality. Located next to Manger Square between the Church of the Nativity and the Mosque of Omar.


2002 - Gardens of Peace Muslim Cemetery, Elmbridge Road, Hainault (England). "Truly! To Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.” (Sura 2: 156).


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Date? - Masjid As-Salam / Mosque of Peace, 2824 Kennedy Boulevard, Jersey City, New Jersey (USA). Was connected to Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, commonly known in the USA as "The Blind Sheikh," who is currently serving a life sentence for his role in the 1993 World Trade Center bombings.
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Date? - Masjid As-Salam / Mosque of Peace, Albany, New York (USA).

May 29, 2003 - Najeen / Survivor, Fardus Square, Baghdad (Iraq). On same pedestal from which the statue of Saddam Hussein was toppled on April 9, 2003. "For the new plaster sculpture, 23 feet tall (7 meters), the Najeen created abstract figures of a mother, father, and child holding a crescent moon, symbol of Islam, around a sun, symbol of the Sumerian civilization... The graffiti-marked pedestal bears a sign with the sculpture's title: 'NAJEEN.'"


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September 2003 - Halabja Martyrs Monument & Museum, Halabja (Iraq). A 100-foot-tall modern structure with a museum inside. Honors the thousands of people killed in 1988 when Saddam Hussein's army infamously attacked the town with chemical weapons. Opened just six months after the US invasion of Iraq. Secretary of State Colin Powell & other US dignitaries attended opening ceremony and were received by cheering crowds in the streets. Demonstrators set the monument on fire March 16, 2006, in protest against lack of government assistance. Affiliated with International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP).

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November 14, 2003 - Arabic/Islamic Cultural Mural, Islamic Society of San Francisco, Market & 7th Streets, San Francisco, California (USA). 54 feet by 30 feet. Designed by Dr. Fayeq Oweis, Khalil BenDib & Said Nuseibeh.


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2005 - Arab American National Musuem, 13624 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, Michigan (USA). "First museum in the world devoted to Arab American history & culture. By bringing the voices and faces of Arab Americans to mainstream audiences, we continue our commitment to dispel misconceptions about Arab Americans and other minorities. We brings to light the shared experiences of immigrants and ethnic groups, paying tribute to the diversity of our nation." Entrance mural designed by Dr. Fayeq Oweis of California. A Smithsonian Affiliate.


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July 6, 2006 - Peace Marker Republic of Lebanon, Point of Peace #7, International Center of Human Studies, Byblos (Lebanon). One of eight Worldwide Peace Markers.

October 2006 - SIEV X Memorial, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (Australia). Commemorates 300 refugees (mostly Iraqi) who were rescued in October 2001 from a 19.5 metre fishing boat. SIEV is naval jargon for "Suspected Illegal Entry Vessel." Temporary monument reconstructed annually.

June 29, 2007 - Tehran Peace Monument, City Park, Tehran (Irân). Unveiled on the 20th anniverary of the chemical attack on the town of Sardashi in northwestern Iran. Depicts a white dove mounted on a marble pedestal and decorated by a message in six languages: "That terrible suffering gave us a new understanding of the cruelty of war, the terror of weapons of mass destruction, and the importance of peace. Until the day when all people on Earth can live in peace, we will continuously send messages of peace to the world."


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September 21, 2007 - Tehran Peace Museum, City Park, Tehran (Iran). An initiative of the Society for Chemical Weapons Victims Support (SCWVS), assisted by the Dayton International Peace Museum of Dayton, Ohio (USA). Dedicated on the 20th anniverary of the chemical attack on the town of Sardashi in northwestern Iran. Opened on International Day for Peace. The Tehran Peace Monument (qv) was unveiled June 29, 2007, 150 meters from the museum. Affiliated with International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP).


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November 11, 2007 - Mausoleum & Minaret honoring Yasser Arafat, Al-Muqata'a, Ramallah (Palestine). Dedicated on the third anniversary of Arafat's death in Paris. Right next to the presidential headquarters where Arafat spent his last years. Yasser Arafat [1929-2004] received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 with Shimon Peres & Yitzhak Rabin.

March 21, 2009 - Peace Pole?, Shrine of Hazrat Ali (also known as the Blue Mosque), Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan). "A large pole is raised at the shrine, marking the first day of the [Iranian] New Year 1388 in a ceremony that draws thousands of turbaned Pashtuns from the south, Tajiks in flat hats from the west, and Mongol-featured Hazaras to pray for peace at the blue monument built in honour of Ali, the fourth caliph of Islam."

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November 2009 - Global Peace Ring, Amin & Co., Suha Bazaar, Lahore (Pakistan). "World's biggest ring." Seven goldsmiths toiled for 577 days to create the 50 x 57 inch ring weighing 74 kilograms. From owner Muhammad Amin Saleem: " 210 FLAGS on the surface of my Ring are an indication of Global Unity and Integrity which is the dream of every eye in this complex modern world... By the grace of Allah, the ceaseless labour of my team and the prayers of my nearest and dearest ones, I feel pride of having the honour in accomplishing the dream of my late father (may God bless his soul rest of eternal heaven) who longed for such a marvellous ring as a token of Love and Peace for the whole world. Global peace has been in constant threat for many years. The only way out is the establishment of Peace Free from territorial bias and prejudice. Peace has its own victories no less renowned than war." /// Info courtesy of Julie Obermeyer (Peace Museum, Bradford, England).


November 20, 2009 - Peace Monument, Wausau, Wisconsin (USA). "Brainchild of Egyptian exchange student Mustafah Saleh and Chuck McCarthy from the Good News Project. Richard Riley from the State Department and Mahmoud Amer from the Egyptian Consulate...talked about the importance of local diplomacy and how it's interactions like this that can lead to peace, not just on a strategic or national scale, but person to person. Saleh said he will take its plans back home and get a similar structure built there.

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May 31, 2010 - MV Mavi Marmara. Owned by the Islamic charity Insani Yardim Vakfi / Foundation for Human Rights & Freedom & Humanitarian Relief (IHH). Israeli commandos attacked the Turkish ship in international waters with about 600 peace activsts on board as it and five other vessels were en route to Gaza with 10,000 tons of construction materials and humanitrian supplies. Israel has blockaded Gaza since 2007.


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Future - Oush Grab Peace Park, Jerusalem-Eastern Gush Etzion Highway, Beit-Sahour (Shepherd’s Field), east of Bethlehem (Occupied Palestine). A development (fully funded by USAID in 2006) for a children’s hospital, youth center, public peace park, environmental center, recreation center, cultural center, and parking lot, but halted (indefinitely?) due to a counter proposal by "Women in Green" for a "Jewish Shdema" (settlement) on the same site (which is an abandoned IDF army camp).

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