Ten years ago, when Rabia and her husband, Elias, were in Iraq to bear witness with Iraqi citizens prior to the U.S. invasion, they began writing their well-known “Letters from the Road.” This collection of Rabia’s eLetters recounts her inner and outer experiences as she worked for peace and justice in Burma, Iraq, Indonesia, Thailand, Brazil, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine/Israel, and most recently in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Afghanistan: It really is about the Women! - The realities of every day life for many women in Afghanistan are similar to women living in poor nations in areas of conflict throughout the world. In other words it is terrible...

Afghanistan: Changing a Culture of Violence - In my speeches about Afghanistan in the U.S. someone from the audience inevitably asks what I think about the high number of causalities caused by the current military engagement...

Pakistan: The Politics of Fear: Part 1 - It was tea break. I joined the stream into a large gloomy room with no windows (for our security I was told) in the National Library in Islamabad and confronted a sea of men...

Pakistan: The Politics of Fear: Part 2 - The U.S. Role in the Return of the Taliban After 9/11 the people in Afghanistan, Pakistan and many international optimists like me expected the U S-led international community to commit to rebuilding Afghanistan and undertaking reforms in...

Afghanistan: Glimmers of Light - Most of my liberal friends are discouraged about Afghanistan. They are convinced the Afghans don’t want us there, that the military is not capable of doing anything right, and that we have to admit the...

Does the U.S. Military belong in Afghanistan? - Recently I traveled to Kabul with a small peace delegation because I wanted to experience for myself what is happening there and what the people say they want and need from my country. I...

Becoming a Citizen Diplomat - 10 years ago my husband, Elias, and I sold our house and belongings, packed what was left in a small storage container, raised funds from a few friends and set off on an open-ended pilgrimage [...]

Voices from Kabul - KABUL, AFGHANISTAN So ring the bells that still can ring forget your perfect offering There is a crack in everything That’s how the light gets in. - Leonard Cohen I recently returned from the Middle East and Afghanistan, and am surrounded...

Confessions of a Peace Activist - KABUL, AFGHANISTAN Kabul: armed guards, machine guns and sand bags at every intersection and at the door to my guest house – open sewers and fecal dust – traffic jams of SUVs, military convoys, bicycles and...

Our Great Loss - MEXICO This story must be told. Omar Diop is a finely-built black man, about 45 years old with small laugh lines radiating from his bright eyes...

Syrian Pilgrimage - DAMASCUS, SYRIA “In America, the idea of us Syrians is that we eat foreigners,” joked Mahat El-Khoury, a 71 year-old human rights worker and recent...

On Pilgrimage - COLORADO Four years ago the two of us sold our house and left on an open-ended “pilgrimage,” expanding on the work we had been doing...

Creating a Nonviolent Culture - COLORADO “After the final no there comes a yes, and on that yes the future of the world depends.” - Wallace Stevens Elias and I returned to the United States from Iraq in time to permit...

Dark Night of the Soul - BAGHDAD, IRAQ But we, like sentries, are obliged to stand In starless nights, and wait the ‘pointed hours. - John Dryden Elias has been busy for the past days making banners, getting tents...

In Iraq with Colin Powell - BAGHDAD, IRAQ We arrived in Baghdad three days ago. It is good to be back, though it seems strange to say that. There is something...

Back to Baghdad - AMMAN, JORDAN Today we write from a small hotel in Amman, Jordan, waiting for our visas which will enable us to return to Iraq. The...

The Darkest Time of the Year - BAGHDAD, IRAQ This is a letter from both of us, our last from Iraq for the time being. After two months here we have decided...

How We Spend Our Days - BAGHDAD, IRAQ Almost every day there are new rumours that a U.S. attack is coming soon. Once again a large group of the press was...