The Arab American News
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ISIS car bomb kills four in Yemeni mosque
SANAA — A car bomb exploded outside a mosque in Yemen's war-ravaged capital Sanaa on Wednesday, killing four people and wounding six, health authorities and a security source said. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack on the Al Faydh Alhatemy mosque, more commonly known as Burhani, in the eastern Sanaa of Nuqum, describing the...Israel authorizes force-feeding of hunger-striking prisoners
A protest supporting Palestinian prisoner Khader Adnan in the West Bank.JERUSALEM — On Thursday, Israel's parliament authorized the force-feeding of prisoners on hunger strike, a move that has met vehement opposition from the country's medical association and rights groups. The legislation promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin...
Detroit FBI special agent in charge promoted
July 31st, 20150 DETROIT — Paul M. Abbate, special agent in charge of the FBI's Detroit Division, was promoted to assistant director in charge of FBI Washington Field Office. Abbate was handed the Detroit job in October 2013, succeeding Robert Foley, who stepped down after a year. Abbate has cultivated a close working relationship with the Arab...
Students can now take EMU classes at Henry Ford College
July 31st, 20150 DEARBORN — Eastern Michigan University is establishing a new University Center on the main campus of Henry Ford College in Dearborn. The partnership became official when Stan Jensen, Henry Ford College’s president, and Kim Schatzel, interim president, provost and executive vice president of Eastern Michigan, signed the agreement on...Jordan jails eight for “plotting terrorist acts”
AMMAN — Jordan handed down jail sentences Wednesday against seven of its citizens and a Syrian for planning attacks on U.S. soldiers in the country and on the Israeli embassy, a judicial source said. The plots in question would have involved "terrorist acts" against the U.S. service personnel at a Jordan military base in Al-Moaqar in...Libyan court sentences Gaddafi’s son Saif to death
TRIPOLI — On Tuesday, a Libyan court sentenced Muammar Gaddafi's most prominent son, Saif al-Islam, and eight others to death over war crimes, including killings of protesters during the 2011 revolution that ended his father's rule. The former Gaddafi regime officials sentenced to die by firing squad included former intelligence chief...Voters encouraged to cast ballots in Aug. 4 elections
LANSING — All eligible voters are encouraged to cast their ballots in local elections on Tuesday, Aug. 4. According to Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, 46 of Michigan’s 83 counties are holding elections. "Because many of these elections are for schools, townships and cities, everyone’s vote is essential," Johnson said. "I...
Improved services attract more Arab Americans to Detroit, but challenges remain
July 31st, 20150 Khader Abu Khader with his family in their Detroit home.DETROIT — Improved city services and better quality of life in the neighborhoods are prompting Arab Americans to buy and rent homes in Detroit. These new Arab Detroiters are benefiting from and contributing to the city’s ongoing recovery. Despite the promise of Detroit's...
Police crack down on gas stations after business sells drug set-up kits
July 31st, 20150 Craig speaking to Ajami minutes before closing down his Sunoco gas station on eight mile DETROIT— Bassam Saleh's business was one of several visited by police last weekend as part of an attempt to crack down on the sale of drug paraphernalia at Detroit gas stations. Police visited Saleh's station...Mass. man accused of plotting ‘Islamic State’ college bombing pleads not guilty
The son of a Boston police captain arrested this month and accused of planning to bomb a college cafeteria on behalf of the Islamic State militant group pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to criminal charges. Alexander Ciccolo, 23, did not speak during his federal court appearance other than to enter his plea. He was arrested on July 4...TSA chief vows to close security gaps at U.S. airports
WASHINGTON — The new leader of the Transportation Security Administration said on Wednesday his top priority would be to close security gaps at airport checkpoints where an internal report showed 96 percent of undercover tests failed. Peter Neffenger, the agency's new administrator, told a congressional panel that front-line TSA...Greater cooperation needed between police and businesses in Detroit
Excessive ticketing of gas stations and liquor stores owners continues to be a problem in Detroit. Once again, business owners are receiving multiple tickets for not having the proper licenses, missing invoices and other suspected violations. Sometimes the owners get several tickets for the same offense while in the processes of...
Women in the Niqab share experiences and struggles
July 30th, 20150 The Niqab has sparked controversy in a number of stories and events, including one about a Muslim woman in Canada who was not allowed to take her oath of citizenship because she wore the Niqab. In France, it was banned— along with a number of other face covering gear, such as balaclavas, helmets, and masks— in public places where,...
Group seeks families to host exchange students from the Middle East
July 30th, 20150 D EARBORN – Youth For Understanding (YFU), a non-profit organization that assists in bringing foreign exchange students into the country, is looking for hosting families who would be able to provide a home for three students during their stay. YFU works with the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study Program, a scholarship program...Anti-Gulf bigotry is inexcusable
Intra-Arab bigotry is a known matter. The Lebanese don't like Iraqis. The Iraqis think they are better than Yemenis. Yemenis think all Lebanese are condescending bigots. The clash of national identities is a tragedy in our community, especially since anti-Arab xenophobia does not differentiate in its hatred for us. Moreover, because......
Florida gun store sued after declaring itself ‘Muslim-free’
ORLANDO, FLA — A Florida gun store that proclaimed itself a Muslim-free zone was sued on Wednesday, July 29, in federal court by the state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations on the grounds that the restriction is discriminatory. The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale accuses Florida Gun...
Israeli diplomat: majority of American Jews support Iran nuclear deal
July 30th, 20150 Alon PinkasDETROIT — According to Alon Pinkas, the former Consul General of Israel in New York, American Jews are more in favor of the Iran nuclear deal than the general American public. A telephone poll of 501 respondents conducted by the LA Jewish Journal found that 49 percent of American Jews favor the deal, while 31 percent......
‘Harley Hijabi’ stirs social media discussion
July 30th, 20151 DEARBORN — On Monday, July 27, The Arab American News published a photo on its Facebook page capturing a Muslim woman in a headscarf riding a motorcycle on Ford Road in east Dearborn. A reader who had stopped at a traffic light with the Muslim biker sent the photo to the newspaper. It was taken at an angle that did not reveal...
Israeli media: Drone strike targeted Samir Kuntar in Syria
July 30th, 20150 Samir Kuntar in Beirut, 2008 (AP)Several Israeli media outlets have reported that a drone strike on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights targeted Samir Kuntar, a former Lebanese guerrilla fighter who spent 29 years in Israeli prison before being released in a prisoner exchange in 2008.Kuntar, 53, was apprehended at age 16 while carrying...
Land swap deal approved by Detroit City Council
July 30th, 20150 DETROIT—On Tuesday, the Detroit City Council approved a controversial deal between the city and billionaire Manual “Matty” Moroun. The land swap deal would not only provide land for Moroun to build a second span adjacent to the Ambassador Bridge, which he owns, but also $3 million that would be...
Grand Rapids man arrested for smuggling guns to Lebanon
July 30th, 20150 GRAND RAPIDS— A Grand Rapids man faces federal charges for allegedly smuggling guns from the United States to Lebanon.Gilbert Oscar Elian, a Lebanese man who became a naturalized U.S. citizen, was in federal court in Grand Rapids on Tuesday, July 28.Federal authorities allege the 54-year-old used the import/export business he owns to......
Court of Appeals to consider case of Arabs’ bank accounts’ closure
July 30th, 20153 Huntington Bank in DearbornDEARBORN — The U.S. Sixth Court of Appeals reversed the decision of the federal District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to dismiss a lawsuit against Huntington Bank for allegedly discriminating against Arab Americans by closing their accounts. The lawsuit was filed in Detroit in July 2013...
I was barred from entering my homeland
July 29th, 20150 I waited more than seven hours and endured six different interrogations; and this is the conversation (from memory) that barred me from entering my homeland on the grounds that I was uncooperative. It was with an extremely unpleasant woman in uniform, red hair and massive amounts of makeup (for some reason, that's relevant). Keep......
Iraqi militia leader says U.S. not serious about fighting ISIS
Qais al-KhazaliBAGHDAD - The head of one of Iraq's fiercest Shi'a militias called the U.S.-led coalition's campaign against ISIS ineffective and accused Washington of lacking the will to uproot extremists controlling large swathes of Iraq and Syria.Qais al-Khazali, leader of Iranian-backed paramilitary group Asaib Ahl al-Haq, said the...Community garden contributing to recovery process for adults with mental illness
DEARBORN—ACCESS Hope House members and ACCESS youth volunteers toiled in the soil this spring to plant the center’s first community garden. Hope House members, adults with a history of mental illness, worked together with the youth to dig up the ground near the front corner of the Hope House......
