Home Los Angeles Press Releases 2009 Dafer Mohammed Dakhil Named FBI Los Angeles Recipient of the Director’s Community Leadership Award
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Dafer Mohammed Dakhil Named FBI Los Angeles Recipient of the Director’s Community Leadership Award

FBI Los Angeles February 18, 2009
  • Public Affairs Specialist Laura Eimiller (310) 996-3343

Mr. Dafer Mohammed Dakhil has been named the Los Angeles recipient of the Director’s Community Leadership Award for the year 2008, an honor awarded annually by the FBI to publicly recognize community leaders, announced Salvador Hernandez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles. Since 1990, the FBI has publicly recognized individuals and members of organizations who have made exceptional contributions in educating their communities about the harmful effects of violence and drugs, and by devising and implementing prevention strategies.

Mr. Dakhil has consistently volunteered his own time to collaborate with law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, in efforts to reach the Muslim community toward improved mutual understanding. While Mr. Dakhil places an emphasis on groups within the American Muslim community, he also provides support to a growing number of Latino Muslims, as well as other groups from the Pacific Rim and Africa.

Mr. Dakhil is the Director of Community Development and External Affairs for the Omar Ibn Al Khattab Foundation. He is responsible for the foundation's governmental and community relations. In that capacity, he develops and oversees the implementation of secular, cultural and educational outreach programs. His foundation is also engaged in humanitarian, educational and social programs within the African-American Muslim community. Notably, Mr. Dakhil was involved in the construction and successful establishment of a K-5 public charter school for under-privileged children.

Mr. Dakhil has been recognized in the past for accomplishments in multi-cultural bridge building and human relations issues. He has also been recognized for achieving educational reform, justice, equitable distribution of human resources, and funding in public education. In addition, Mr. Dakhil has assisted with improving communication, understanding and cooperation among the diverse communities in Los Angeles. By initiating various programs, he has helped facilitate the transition of many in the American Muslim community into active engagement in various aspects of American civic life.

Mr. Dakhil is a member of the FBI's Multi Cultural Advisory Committee; the FBI's Regional Advisory Council; the Los Angeles Department of Homeland Security Roundtable; the State Terrorism Threat Assessment Advisory Group; the Muslim-American Homeland Security Congress; the Drug Enforcement Administration Citizen's Academy Alumni Association; and the LAPD Chief’s Muslim Community Forum.

In addition, Mr. Dakhil serves on the University of Southern California (USC) Community Advisory Council and is a Founding Co-Director of the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement, a partnership between USC's Center for Religion and Civic Culture. He is also a Co-Director of the USC Hebrew Union College Institute of Advanced Catholic Studies and a member of the Los Angeles Interfaith Environmental Council. Further, Mr. Dakhil is a member of the Figueroa Corridor Partnership, and the Christian Muslim Consultation Group. Finally, Mr. Dakhil is a member of the Board of Education - Human Relations Education Council, and the California Science Center's Ethics Advisory Committee.

Mr. Dafer Mohammed Dakhil and 59 other recipients of the Director’s Community Leadership Award will attend an official ceremony with Director Robert Mueller at the FBI’s Headquarters in Washington, D.C. on March 20, 2009.