Italian politicians, religious figures attend iftar

ROME: Bologna’s Archbishop Matteo Zuppi and Romano Prodi, former European Commission president and former Italian prime minister, attended an iftar meal in the city along with local politicians.

Also in attendance were the city’s Mayor Matteo Lepore, University of Bologna Rector Giovanni Molari and Stefano Bonaccini, governor of the Emilia Romagna region.

They were invited by Yassine Lafram, president of the Union of Islamic Communities and Organizations in Italy.

The event took place at the new Assalam Islamic Center in the popular Corticella neigborhood of Bologna. Among the food served in the garden were Moroccan, Algerian and Pakistani specialties.

At the entrance, a large book with the word “welcome” in Arabic and Italian was on display. Anyone could leave a thought, wish or prayer.

Zuppi said Ramadan, like Lent for Christians, is “a time of great self-discipline to free ourselves from useless things by valuing those that we really need.”

He added: “This is the first step toward peace that’s truly such only if we learn to renounce everything that divides us in order to appreciate what really unites us.”

Prodi described the event as “a beautiful demonstration of peace, especially in this hard time,” adding: “We all need signs of peace like this one we’re experiencing here and now together. No major debates or demonstrations are needed as nothing is more efficient for cooperation and friendship than sitting down at the table and talking together as we’re doing here today.”

Lafram said the event was “a moment of sharing and celebration with our friends and with the community.”

He added: “It’s inevitable that our thoughts today go to those peoples who are at war, deprived of freedom and under bombs. Together we all pray for them.

“We really need peace, and this moment of fraternity aims to demonstrate how being together is the real answer to the conflicts that are bringing so much suffering.”