As I begin

I flew into London Heathrow and was met by Anwar Khan and Jehangir Malik from Islamic Relief at the airport. I had a smooth sailing through customs and was a little nervous not knowing what to expect after the train bombings in London.

I spent the day at the Islamic Relief UK office in East London where the staff briefed us on some of their activities. Mostly, it was about various fundraisers they were having, but one highlight was to find that Islamic Relief has graduated into not only relief and development but also advocacy as well. For example the End Hunger Now campaign that coincided with the G8 summit, Islamic Relief was one of the sponsoring organizations. Also, they have also joined, in the UK, what is known as the DEC (Disaster and Emergency Committee) that has pooled 9 national charities together to jointly raise money for various disasters and emergencies across the world. They are currently working on the Niger issue.

I leave today for Moscow, then onwards to Nalchik. Once there, we will have to submit papers to travel to Ingusethia and I hope to be there by Monday. As I am mentally preparing to go, I can’t help but recall my trip to Bosnia in 1996 that I made. So much has changed, just in the technology we can use to report back. Back then, I never thought I would be able to keep a blog like this!!!! Digital cameras were too expensive, etc. I am looking for to this trip but am also nervous in what to expect. This area has been on the Muslim mind for about one and a half decades, but few have traveled there to experience the situation first hand. I thank Allah for blessing me with this opportunity and ask that He allow me to accurately convey my thoughts as we proceed.

Till Next time,
Babi