The Arab American News
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Top scientists question the need for COVID-19 booster shots
May 13th, 20210 COVID-19 vaccine developers are making ever bolder assertions that the world will need yearly booster shots, or new vaccines to tackle concerning coronavirus variants, but some scientists question when, or whether, such shots will be needed. In interviews with Reuters, more than a dozen influential infectious disease and vaccine...
U.S. children ages 12 to 15 could begin COVID-19 vaccinations Thursday
May 11th, 20210 U.S. regulators authorized Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for use in children as young as 12 and said they could begin receiving shots as soon as Thursday, widening the country’s inoculation program as vaccination rates have slowed significantly. This is the first COVID-19 vaccine to be authorized in the U.S. for ages 12...
Miss Lebanon joins incoming U.S. diplomat to commemorate Arab Heritage Month
May 7th, 20210 — The following article was contributed by the Lebanese American Foundation in Los Angeles, California. LOS ANGELES — To mark the culmination of Arab Heritage Month, The House of Lebanon, the cultural center for the Lebanese American Foundation, composed a star-studded message featuring top Arab and Lebanese leaders and...
Lebanon’s lights may go off as cash for electricity runs out
May 7th, 20210 BEIRUT – Lebanon's lights may go off this month because cash for electricity generation is running out, a lawmaker said on Thursday, as the country grapples with a deep economic crisis. Lebanon's parliament had approved a $200 million emergency loan to finance fuel imports for power generation in March, but a committee reviewing the...
Saudi Arabia considers barring overseas Hajj pilgrims for second year, sources say
May 5th, 20210 RIYADH – Saudi Arabia is considering barring overseas pilgrims from the annual Hajj for the second year running as COVID-19 cases rise globally and worries grow about the emergence of new variants, two sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. Such a move would restrict the pilgrimage to Mecca, a once in a lifetime duty...
Syrian court selects two candidates to appear on ballot against Assad
May 3rd, 20210 DAMASCUS — On Monday, Syria's higher constitutional court selected two obscure figures to appear on ballots standing against President Bashar al-Assad in a May 26 election, which the West rejects as a farce that will hurt diplomatic efforts to end the civil war. From a list of 51 potential candidates, the court approved just...
Blinken meets Israel’s Mossad spy chief for talks on Iran
May 1st, 20210 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met the head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency and its ambassador to Washington on Thursday, and the Israeli officials expressed “deep concern” about Iran’s nuclear activities, according to a person familiar with the matter. The meeting in Washington followed talks this week between U.S....
Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of “apartheid” crimes against Palestinians
April 27th, 20210 NEW YORK — On Tuesday, an international rights watchdog accused Israel of pursuing policies of apartheid and persecution against Palestinians — and against its own Arab minority — that amount to crimes against humanity. New York-based Human Rights Watch published a 213-page report, which it said was not aimed at comparing...
New U.S. census data will show which states gain or lose House seats
April 26th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Monday, the U.S. Census Bureau will release the data that determines whether states gain or lose congressional seats and Electoral College votes, setting the stage for a pitched battle over redistricting that could reshape political power in Washington for a decade. Under the U.S. Constitution, the 435 seats...
U.S. ends J&J COVID-19 vaccine pause; shots to resume immediately
April 24th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. can immediately resume use of Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine, top health regulators said on Friday, ending a 10-day pause to investigate its link to extremely rare but potentially deadly blood clots. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Food and Drug...
Prosecutors expect at least 100 more arrests for U.S. Capitol riot
April 23rd, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Justice Department expects to charge at least 100 more people for taking part in the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol, signaling prosecutors are far from finished investigating an attack that a judge on Thursday called an act of terrorism. "Over 400 individuals have been charged in connection with the...
Ramadan nights see Israeli police and Palestinians face off in Jerusalem
April 22nd, 20210 JERUSALEM — Nightly clashes and other violent incidents between Palestinians and Israelis in Jerusalem during Ramadan have laid bare simmering tensions in the holy city. Palestinians have clashed with Israeli police amid a dispute over evening gatherings at Damascus Gate after iftar, the breaking of the daytime fast during the...
Syria to hold presidential election, slammed by opposition, on May 26
April 18th, 20210 DAMASCUS — Syria will hold a presidential election on May 26 that is virtually certain to return President Bashar al-Assad for a third term — an event that Washington and the opposition say is a farce designed to cement his autocratic rule. Assad's family and his Baath party have ruled Syria for five decades with the help of the...
Lebanon energy minister blames fuel shortage on Syria smuggling
April 16th, 20210 BEIRUT - Lebanon's caretaker energy minister on Thursday blamed the country's fuel crisis on profiteers who smuggle gasoline into neighboring Syria. At a Cabinet meeting to discuss the issue, Raymond Ghajar said the gap in gasoline prices between the two countries meant smugglers could make huge profits. "The price of 20 liters of...
Ship owned by Israeli firm attacked off UAE coast, media reports
April 13th, 20210 DUBAI — A commercial vessel owned by an Israeli firm was attacked off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in Gulf waters, pro-Iran media and an Israeli television channel said on Tuesday. Israel’s top-rated Channel 12 quoted unnamed Israeli officials as blaming arch-foe Iran for the assault, which it described as a missile......
Dearborn Schools recognizes Arab American Heritage Month
April 13th, 20210 DEARBORN — April is National Arab American Heritage Month and the Dearborn Public Schools says it is proud to recognize the accomplishments and contributions Arab Americans have made to the Dearborn area, Michigan and the country. During the April 12 Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Dr. Glenn Maleyko reminded attendees...
Israel pledges to work with U.S. on Iran
April 11th, 20210 JERUSALEM — Israel’s defense minister pledged on Sunday to cooperate with the U.S. on Iran, voicing hope that Israeli security would be safeguarded under any renewed Iranian nuclear deal that Washington reaches. “Israel views the United States as a full partner across all operational theatres, not the least Iran,” Benny Gantz......
U.S. restores assistance for Palestinians, to provide $235 million in aid
April 8th, 20210 WASHINGTON, D.C./WEST BANK — On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced it would provide $235 million in U.S. aid to the Palestinians, restarting funding for the United Nations agency supporting refugees and restoring other assistance cut off by former President Trump. The package, including humanitarian, economic and...
Israel says it does not recognize the International Criminal Court’s authority
April 8th, 20210 Israel will tell the International Criminal Court (ICC) it does not recognize the authority of the tribunal, which is planning to investigate possible war crimes in the Palestinian territories, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday. Netanyahu, after meeting with senior ministers and government officials ahead of a Friday...
Activists stage hunger strike, rally in D.C. against the war on Yemen
April 6th, 20210 - From contributor Laura Albast Activists from the Yemeni Liberation Movement (YLM) and other organizations held a rally at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. on Saturday. They carried banners calling for an end to the U.S.-backed Saudi blockade on the embattled country. The five Michigan natives leading the action staged a...
Netanyahu’s favours were ‘currency’, prosecutor says as corruption trial starts
April 5th, 20210 JERUSALEM - An Israeli prosecutor told a court on Monday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had helped a business couple to clinch deals worth hundred of millions of shekels in exchange for favourable coverage of him on a news website they controlled. Speaking at the opening of Netanyahu’s corruption trial, state prosecutor Liat......
Let us build bridges and not walls
April 3rd, 20210 - From Nada Almawiri My name is Nada and I am a Yemeni American student at the University of Detroit Mercy. My current instructor is Abbas Al Haj Ahmad, who is also a writer at The Arab American News. Mr. Abbas Al Haj Ahmad has been a great mentor, instructor and an active member of our community. I am very saddened to see what...
“Right to travel”: Biden and Congress must keep their promises to Arab Americans
April 3rd, 20210 This week, a federal appeals court in Virginia enshrined the federal government's use of the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB). After a lower court ruling held that the TSDB's application deprived Americans, especially those of Arab and Muslim descent, the right to due process under the law, this appeals court declared that the right......
A house divided against itself cannot stand: Addressing Anti-Yemeni Discrimination in the Arab American Community
April 3rd, 20211 It started at childhood. “Yemeni, Yemeni, shower is my enemy.” At 9-years-old, these unforgettable words, among others, were often muttered by my fellow Arab classmates. I painfully recall standing there, frozen stiff as tears of shame and confusion threatened to spill over. As a young Yemeniya, I could not comprehend why I was...
Iran, world powers to discuss U.S. return to nuclear deal, compliance
April 3rd, 20210 PARIS – Officials from Iran, China, Russia, France, Germany and Britain met virtually on Friday to discuss a possible return of the United States to the 2015 nuclear deal, the European Union said in a statement on Thursday. The Biden administration has been seeking to engage Iran in talks about both sides resuming compliance with the......
