Ramadan Dinner at the White House: The Guest List
Updated 7:38 p.m.
By Michael A. Fletcher
President Obama will host a White House dinner Tuesday night celebrating
Ramadan, the Muslim holy month during which the faithful fast from dawn to
sunset each day.
Obama will be joined at the dinner by three Cabinet members, five members of
Congress, nearly two dozen foreign diplomats, and 33 community leaders.
Among the invited diplomats are the Israeli ambassador and the chief of
mission for the Palestinian Liberation Organization, as well as the Indian
and Pakistani ambassadors to the United States.
Asked about the unusual step of inviting the Israeli ambassador to the
dinner, the White House described it as a small part of the event. "Tonight
was an opportunity to continue the tradition of hosting iftars at the White
House, while celebrating Muslim Americans, and tonight's dinner is made up
of a diverse group of individuals from business leaders to members of the US
military," White House spokesman Thomas Vietor said. "Additionally, we
thought it was an opportunity to reach out to ambassadors of nations with
sizable Muslim populations, including the ambassadors of France, the [United
Kingdom], India, and Israel."
Obama intends to highlight one story in particular: that of Bilqis
Abdul-Qaadir, a young woman who broke high school basketball records in
Massachusetts before heading to the University of Memphis -- while wearing a
traditional hijab.
Obama, who held
<http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/04/10/a_low-key_high_profile_seder
.html> an intimate Passover Seder at the White House in April, will host the
dinner beginning at 8 p.m. tonight. Ramadan, which started on Aug. 22, will
end on Sept. 20.
On Aug. 21, the president released
<http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/08/21/obama_wishes_ramadan_kareem_
to.html> a Ramadan video message to Muslims around the world.
The guest list released by the White House follows:
CABINET
Secretary Robert Gates, Department of Defense
Attorney General Eric Holder, Department of Justice
Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Health and Human Services
DEPUTY CABINET SECRETARIES
Deputy Secretary Dennis Hightower, Department of Commerce
Deputy Secretary Adam Miller, Department of Education
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
Congressman Andre Carson (Indiana 7th)
Congressman John Conyers (Michigan 14th)
Congressman Keith Ellison (Minnesota 5th)
Congressman Rush Holt (New Jersey 12th)
Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN)
DIPLOMATIC CORPS
Ambassador Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid Al Hussein, Jordan
Ambassador Adel A.M. Al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabia
Ambassador Husain Haqqani, Pakistan
Ambassador Erlan A. Idrissov, Kazakhstan
Ambassador His Excellency Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan
Ambassador Aziz Mekouar, Morocco
Ambassador Peter N.R.O. Ogego, Kenya
Ambassador Roble Olhaye, D'jibouti
Ambassador Michael Oren, Israel
Ambassador Sudjadnan Parnohadiningrat, Indonesia
Ambassador Klaus Scharioth, Germany
Ambassador Meera Shankar, India
Ambassador Nabi Sensoy, Turkey
Ambassador Sir Nigel Elton Sheinwald, United Kingdom
Ambassador Sameh Hassan Shoukry, Egypt
Ambassador Samir Shakir Mahmood Sumaida'ie, Iraq
Ambassador Pierre Nicolas Vimont, France
Chargé d'Affaires Sheikh Mohammed Belal, Bangladesh
Chargé d'Affaires Ilango Karuppanan, Malaysia
Chargé d'Affaires Mohamed O Maiga,
Chargé d'Affaires Angela Oi Foong Shim, Brunei
Chargé d'Affaires Baba Gana Wakil, Nigeria
Mr. Maen Areikat, Chief of Mission, PLO
COMMUNITY MEMBERS
Ms. Bilquis Abdul-Qaadir, University of Memphis
Professor Azizah Al-Hibri, University of Richmond School of Law
Ms. Reema Ali, Karamah: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights
Mr. Hasan Chandoo, Oppenheimer & Co.
Rabbi Nathan Diament, Director, Institute for Public Affairs, Orthodox
Union*
Imam Plemon El-Amin, Atlanta Masjid al-Islam
Mr. Wahid Hamid, PepsiCo
Ms. Dina Hammad
Mr. Lutfi Hassan
Ms. Nashala Hearn
Ms. Rosalind Hearn
Imam Yahya Hendi, Chaplain, Georgetown University
Pastor Joel Hunter, Northland Church*
Mr. Nooman Husain
Mr. Imad Hussain
Mr. Sanford Ibrahim, CEO, Radian Group
Mr. Jameel Jaffer, Staff Attorney, ACLU
Mrs. Elsheba Khan
Dr. Mansur Khan, UMMA Community Clinic
Ms. Farhana Khera, Muslim Advocates
Lt. Commander Abuhena Saifulislam, U.S. Marine Corps
Mr. Kareem Salama
Imam Yusuf Saleem, Masjid Muhammad
Dr. Ingrid Mattson, President, Islamic Society of North America
Mr. Farooq Mitha
Ms. Dalia Mogahed, Director, Gallup Center for Muslim Studies*
Ms. Hutham Olayan, Olayan America Corp.
Mr. Eboo Patel, Interfaith Youth Corps*
Imam Yusuf Saleem, Masjid Muhammad
Rabbi David Saperstein, Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism*
Ms. Mina Trudeau, Executive Director, El Fatiha Foundation
Mr. J. Saleh Williams, Congressional Muslim Staffers Association
Mr. Mohamed Zakariya, Zakariya Calligraphy
*denotes members of the President's Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood
Partnerships
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