Editing Assyrian Democratic Movement (section)

== Prior to the Iraqi invasion ==
[[File:Assyrianfighters80.JPG|thumb|left|Zowaa fighters in the [[Assyrian homeland]] in the 1980s.]]
Due to successful lobbying from influential [[Assyrians in the United States|Assyrian-Americans]] and from Congressman [[Henry Hyde]], American President [[George W. Bush]] designated the ADM an officially recognized Iraqi opposition movement. In a December 9, 2002, memorandum, President Bush invoked both articles four and five of the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 as a means of allowing the United States government to provide financial resources to the ADM and other Iraqi opposition groups. Kanna himself participated in a September 2002 meeting of Iraqi opposition leaders in New York and addressed the London conference of Iraqi opposition leaders in December 2002. In February 2003, Kanna addressed both Iraqi opposition leaders and U.S. envoy [[Zalmay Khalilzad]] at a conference in northern Iraq. Just hours prior to the American-led war against Iraq in March 2003, Kanna stressed the importance of the coming war for the history of the Assyrian people. He noted that some Assyrians were leaving the cities for the villages and urged diaspora Assyrians to provide humanitarian aid to their brethren.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Congressional Record, Volume 155 Issue 58 (Tuesday, April 21, 2009)|url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2009-04-21/html/CREC-2009-04-21-pt1-PgE912-2.htm|access-date=2022-01-03|website=www.govinfo.gov}}</ref>