The Arab American News
Author's Posts
Forum seeks to clarify rights
DEARBORN — The Arab Student Union and Muslim Students' Association held an event on Thursday, January 28 at the University of Michigan-Dearborn entitled "Know Your Rights," with an emphasis on clearing up important questions about law enforcement and civil rights. Detroit FBI Special Agent in Charge Andrew Arena, L, local...Corrupt Arab regimes — Who is to blame?
RAMALLAH (IPS) — The Mideast continues to be plagued by autocratic Arab regimes where human rights, democracy and freedom of speech are a pipe dream for the average citizen. But who is to blame and what can be done to amend this situation? While progress towards democratization in previously autocratic regions — including Africa,...Is Obama prepared to exert pressure on Israel?
The recent concerted push to restart the stalled peace process between the Palestinians and Israelis has been complicated by Israel's continual construction of settlements in the West Bank and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demand that Israel maintain a military presence along the West Bank's border with...ADC holds annual MLK scholarship event
DEARBORN — One of metro Detroit's most cherished Martin Luther King, Jr. commemorations marked its 11th anniversary on Jan. 29 as the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Michigan held its MLK Scholarship Awards Reception. ADC MLK Scholarship...Hamas threatens to take fight against Israel beyond Gaza
In the wake of a Hamas claim on Friday that Israeli agents assassinated one of its operatives in Dubai last week, the Islamist movement is vowing to take revenge against the Jewish state for the militant's death – even if it means going abroad. Hamas officials from Damascus, Syria, and the Gaza Strip are threatening to match what they...
U.S., Karzai clash on unconditional talks with Taliban
February 5th, 20100 KABUL (IPS) — On the surface, it would seem unlikely that Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who presides over a politically feeble government and is highly dependent on the U.S. military presence and economic assistance, would defy the United States on the issue of peace negotiations with the leadership of the Taliban insurgency....
Justice Department to investigate shooting death of imam
February 5th, 20100 DEARBORN — After the release this week of an autopsy report that stoked outrage over the FBI's fatal shooting of a Detroit imam in October, the U.S. Justice Department confirmed that it is conducting its own investigation of the incident, according to a U.S. congressman. Jamil Carswell, son of the late Imam Luqman Abdullah,...
Oscar nod for Israeli film
February 5th, 20100 The Israeli movie "Ajami," co-produced by an Israeli Palestinian and an Israeli Jew, was named this week as one of the five Oscar nominees for best foreign-language film. It takes its name from a rough neighborhood in Jaffa, a mostly Arab city just south of Tel Aviv. First it should be said that the film "Ajami" is a masterpiece by...Netanyahu digs into West Bank
MAALEH ADUMIM, Occupied West Bank (IPS) — When Benjamin Netanyahu dug a spade here and in another West Bank settlement this week, some thought the Israeli Prime Minister was actually digging a hole into current United States-sponsored peace efforts. Netanyahu plants a tree in the West Bank on Sunday.Certainly, Netanyahu was...Iraq commission relents on 59 banned candidates
A decision by Iraq's controversial Accountability and Justice Commission (AJC) on Jan. 25 to remove 59 candidates from a list of over 500 candidates banned from running in the March parliamentary elections appears to be a sign that the AJC is softening its stance following widespread domestic opposition and a visit by U.S. Vice President...PA dictates content of Friday sermons
RAMALLAH — The Palestinian Authority (PA) is using West Bank mosques as a new battleground in its political offensive against its opponents within Hamas as well as critics from its own Fatah party. PA President Mahmoud AbbasEarlier this month, PA security forces raided several mosques in Ramallah, Nablus and Hebron...Obama urges bipartisanship, can he deliver?
WASHINGTON — In a State of the Union address with a Clintonesque range of policy initiatives, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in Congress found moments to cheer: U.S. President Barack Obama (below) makes a point as U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi look on during his first State of...Arab nations unite in relief effort for Haiti
WASHINGTON — While not drawing press attention to their efforts, Arab nations have united to provide assistance for humanitarian relief work in Haiti. The Arab American Institute (AAI) believes ttheir generosity should be showcased, and has compiled a list of contributions from Arab nations. "While not covered in the US media, we felt...
Haiti: An unwelcome Katrina redux
February 1st, 20100 President Obama's response to the tragedy in Haiti has been robust in military deployment and puny in what the Haitians need most: food; first responders and their specialized equipment; doctors and medical facilities and equipment; and engineers, heavy equipment and heavy movers. Sadly, President Obama is dispatching Presidents Bush and...The promise of Islamic banking and finance
The Middle East's increasingly prominent role in the world of international finance has prompted questions about whether banking practices followed by both Islamic and Western institutions are in compliance with sharia, or Islamic law. It's an issue to which Hossein Askari, Iran professor of international business and international......
Sanctions, regime change take center stage
WASHINGTON (IPS) — With the United States Senate set to take up major sanctions legislation against Iran by mid-February, neo-conservatives and other hawks are calling on the administration of President Barack Obama to pursue a more aggressive course of "regime change" in Tehran. In recent days, their call was unexpectedly...54 members of Congress tell Obama: Lift Gaza seige
Last week, 54 members of the House of Representatives, led by Congressman Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Congressman Jim McDermott from Washington state, signed a letter to President Obama asking his administration to lift the blockade on Gaza. In the letter, the Representatives said "the unabated suffering of Gazan civilians highlights......
One year on: We should have known
As the first year of the Obama presidency comes to a close, it's worth noting an article that appeared in the progressive news website, AlterNet, on Dec. 24, by Clancy Sigal, that sums up the mood of progressives: "My personal breaking point, after months of jaw-dropping astonishment at Obama's betrayals, was his refusal almost alone of...Christian, Jewish, Muslim mothers the same
Editor's note: Dr. Nurit Peled-Elhanan is the mother of Smadar Elhanan, 13 years old when killed by a suicide bomber in Jerusalem in September 1997. Below is Nurit's speech made on International Women's Day in Strasbourg (2009) . Mohammed, 3, is comforted by his mother during his uncle's funeral in...
Exhibition shows 1,000 years of Muslim science
February 1st, 20100 LONDON — The debt owed by European scholars to their Muslim counterparts on everything from water pumps and blood circulation to engineering and map-making was unveiled in a London exhibition on Jan. 21. The organizers of "1001 Inventions: Discover the Muslim Heritage in Our World," hope to illuminate 1,000 years of neglected...Local groups send relief to Haiti
As the need for relief persists in Haiti, the Southfield-based Life for Relief and Development charity continues to provide assistance to the victims of the devastated country. Life for Relief and Development workers prepare supplies for Haitian earthquake victims.The group partnered with the Dubai-based Mohammed Bin Rashid......
Scott betrays ignorance of Israeli-Palestinian conflict
State Sen. Martha Scott last week defended her 2009 trip to Israel, saying she met with Palestinian lawyers during her stay there to "hear both sides of the story." State Sen. Martha Scott with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a trip to Jerusalem sponsored by an AIPAC-affiliated group.Scott met with right-wing...
Group leaders meet with attorney general
February 1st, 20100 WASHINGTON — Executives of the Arab American Institute (AAI), American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), met with Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday to discuss issues of concern to the Arab American and Muslim communities. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder speaks to a......
Community, officials gather to honor newly elected judge
GROSSE POINTE WOODS — A third-generation Arab American who comes from a family of lawyers was sworn in as a Grosse Pointe Woods municipal court judge on Wednesday. He was elected to the part-time judicial post last November. Grosse Pointe Woods Municipal Court Judge Ted Metry, elected last November, takes a ceremonial oath on...Bring’n the funk
DEARBORN — Despite the popularity of fashion magazines and TV shows, good style can be hard to attain, especially when high department store prices for accessories are factored in. But a new boutique in Detroit on the border of Dearborn named Funkalooza aims to change that by offering customers a chance to find the perfect......