interview with Dr. Nofour Abbas

interviews, shia rituals

• Studied management
• From karbala
• 1959 born
• 18 years at 3ttaba
• Vice advisor to the director?
• What is the role of imams during ashura?
  • Remeberence
  • Preaching
  • Giving instruction
  • Not only the past, but also giving advice about current events
• Are there management of rituals?
• 18k people work in the organizations
  • many cities, economic and other
  • عتبة الحسينية
  • Cities?
    • cultural centers and health centers, such as clinics
    • inside Iraq, overseas is mostly for teaching
• Role of the attaba during the islamic state (is/isis/isil) years?
  • first - giving financing to the hashd al-shaabi (PMF) and iraqi armed forces
  • funerals for dead soldiers
  • fatwa against daesh
    • saving cities out of homeland patriotism
• Insitituionally, how has this changed in the 18 years?
  • only arabeen
  • in 2003, it was only 40 workers maintaining the shrine
• attendance in the last 10 years
  • # of iraqi’s in 2020 - high
    • has always increased, covid did not affect this
  • # of foriengers
    • went down in 2020, but due to government policies
  • does he expect more # in 20201?
    • does expect more, always welcomes more foriengers as long as they have visa and PCR
  • attendenace did not go down during the daesh years
• has anything changed with the rituals in the last 18 years?
  • nothing
  • (although were militant flags always as common? - me)
• 2003 attaba
  • attaba grew dramatically after the 2003 donations
  • previously was maintance only on the shrine
  • more and more festivals across all of iraq
• management structure
  • 7 people majlis selected by diwan office and chosen by the minister of the shrine
  • الهيال الوظيمية
  • 60 sections, each section has a head and has specific roles