The Arab American News
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Critical healthcare fails to recover
RAMALLAH — The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that unless the siege of Gaza is lifted and a political solution implemented, Gaza's badly damaged health system will go from very bad to worse. Palestinians walk past the UNRWA office, where representatives of Palestinian refugee camps conduct a sit-in protest against...Iraqi-Syrian feud political suicide for Maliki
Relations between Iraq and Syria plunged abruptly on Tuesday after Baghdad recalled its ambassador to Damascus over the recent bombings in the Iraqi capital in which 100 Iraqis were killed. Iraqi ambassador in Syria Ala al-Jawadi speaks during a news conference at his office in Damascus August 25, 2009. Iraq and Syria recalled...Copts split over presidential scion
CAIRO (IPS) — Leaders of Egypt's Coptic Christian Church have voiced support for Gamal Mubarak, son of President Hosni Mubarak, as preferred candidate for president. Concurrently, however, some Coptic activists are calling for demonstrations against what they see as official state bias against Christians. Gamal Mubarak...Eliminating the rallying cry of extremists
All Islamic groups are allied with al Qaeda, right? That has certainly been the wisdom accepted by so many in the post 9/11 years. And though I am an American Palestinian Christian, it is assumed that I am Muslim and therefore a Hamas supporter. This was made clear to me by a Detroit-area talk show host earlier this year when he...Swine flu hits Ramadan gatherings
CAIRO (IPS) — Muslims marked the start of the fasting month of Ramadan Saturday, but the global H1N1 flu pandemic has put a damper on religious festivities throughout the Middle East. "Everyone is worried about swine flu," says Anwar Mohamed, a Yemeni antique dealer. "We have been told to avoid crowds, but everywhere there are...Boycott targets ugly side of beauty industry
As the dust settled on the destroyed homes, schools and lives in the aftermath of Israel's assault on Gaza earlier this year, mainstream human rights groups from Amnesty International to Physicians for Human Rights/Israel issued reports condemning Israel's attack and alleging that the Israeli government and the Israeli Defense Forces had...Woman sues judge over hijab incident
Raneen Albaghdady, left seated, and the Council of American-Islamic Relations-Michigan have filed a federal lawsuit against Wayne County Third. PHOTO: Nick Meyer/TAAN A Muslim woman from Dearborn Heights who originally went to court for a simple name change filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against Wayne County Circuit Judge...VIDEO: Obama extends Ramadan greetings
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) issued a press release on August 21 calling for the U.S. Department of Treasury to ensure that American Muslim donors can fulfill their obligation to donate to Muslim charities without fear. The statement echoed President Barack Obama's call for the government to work with...
Ramadan in Dearborn
August 29th, 20090 Ramadan can be seen in the Detroit area's Middle Eastern enclaves when decorative lights go up on the outsides of houses, large evening crowds fill bakeries and cafes that were empty during daylight hours, and mosques start to overflow at prayer times throughout the day. Abdul Salam Saad, right, of Yemeni origin, breaks fast...Iraqi religious leader dead after battle with cancer
Abdul Aziz al-Hakim died on Wednesday after being hospitalized in Tehran, the Iranian capital, after a fight against lung cancer, Humam Hamoudi and Jalaleddin al-Saghir, two senior officials from al-Hakim's political party, said. Abdul Aziz al-Hakim Al-Hakim had headed the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) since...Dearborn police need help catching suspect in home invasion
An artist's rendering of the suspect in an east Dearborn home invasion on Chase Road, based on police interviews. DEARBORN — Police are looking for a suspect in a home invasion that took place Aug. 24 in the 5400 block of Chase Road. The suspect allegedly pushed his way into the home and threatened the only occupant inside, a...Co-founder of iconic Dearborn mosque dies at 98
Hussien El Haje, photographed May 15 in an emotional moment during a celebration marking over 70 years of worship at the American Moslem Society Dearborn Mosque. PHOTO:TAAN Hussien El Haje, a founder of the iconic Dix mosque in Dearborn's south-end, died on Monday, August 24 at 98 years old. El Haje was honored in May at a...
Why Israel will thwart Obama on settlements
August 29th, 20090 The idea that the Obama administration can advance the Middle East peace process by having Israel freeze its construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank stretches credulity. A Palestinian laborer walks near an Israeli settlement. Does any serious observer of the region believe that Israel's appetite for land –...Mubarak meets Obama to patch up U.S.-Egypt relationship
CAIRO — Until five years ago, it was an annual tradition: every spring Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak would travel to Washington to meet his American counterpart, congressional leaders, and a few newspaper editorial boards. U.S. President Barack Obama (R) meets with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in the Oval Office at the...Embattled Hamas shows its moderate face
RAMALLAH (IPS) — The Islamic resistance movement Hamas's rule of Gaza is facing protracted political and military opposition from within Gaza, other Palestinian territories and abroad. Palestinians greet a Fatah member (C) after his release from a Hamas-run prison in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, August 19, 2009. The......
Ex-wife blamed for Kuwait inferno
KUWAIT — Kuwaiti police investigating a deadly blaze at a wedding tent that killed 43 women and children say the ex-wife of the groom has confessed to starting it. Charred clothing, shoes and other debris litter the ground in the aftermath of the fire that left 43 women and children dead in a wedding tent near Kuwait City....Why is development evading the Arabs?
Arabs face stubborn obstacles to social change. They recognize their problems but do not settle on alternatives; and they are worried about replacing their autocratic political regimes. Change, they fear, may lead to even worse circumstances. Responding to the challenge, Arab scholars have collaborated over the past seven years in......
The Israeli occupation has corrupted its own society
The state of Israel has become hell, into which not only sinners — but also the innocent — may be cast at any moment. According to statistics from the Prime Minister's office, more Israelis have been murdered in the past month in Israel than those murdered since January 2007 in the territory of the Palestinian...Arab American rendition of Obama becomes right-wing icon
Earlier this summer, posters of President Barack Obama appearing as the ominous Joker from the most recent Batman movie, "The Dark Knight" began appearing around Los Angeles and other cities. The poster had sprawled on the bottom the word "Socialism." Conservatives regard Obama's domestic policies as importing socialism into the United...Court reins in terror finance policy
NEW YORK (IPS) — A federal court this week ruled for the first time that the U.S. government cannot freeze an organization's assets under a terror financing law without a warrant based upon probable cause and without telling the organization the basis for its action and giving it a meaningful opportunity to defend itself. If the...Dearborn football teams gunning for title in 2009
DEARBORN — Summer is drawing to a close, and while it’s a sad time for many, others can’t help but be excited by the return of football season. High school football season in Dearborn has always taken on a special significance, especially in regards to the timeless rivalry between cross-town programs Dearborn and Dearborn......
“Captain Abu Raed” opens at Bloomfield Hills Landmark
The first Jordanian film ever exported to theaters around the world opens in the Detroit area this weekend. "Captain Abu Raed," winner of 27 international awards including the 2008 Sundance Film Festival's World Cinema Audience Award, is now showing at the Maple Art Theatre, 4135 West Maple Rd. in Bloomfield Hills. Writer-director...Ramadan resolution adopted in state House
LANSING — The state House on Wednesday adopted a resolution wishing Michigan Muslims a happy Ramadan. The Muslim holy month of fasting, prayer and charitable giving starts this week. The resolution does includes a couple of mistakes. According to a version of the document posted on the legislature's website, the resolution includes......
J Street’s Muslim funding for peace
WASHINGTON (IPS) — News reports and right-wing blogs have been repeating reports which claim that Muslims and Arabs are among the donors to the J Street political action committee (PAC) which lobbies American policymakers to work on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and helps raise campaign funds for candidates...
Iraqi faith in security forces shattered in Baghdad blasts
August 22nd, 20090 BAGHDAD — At the site of the deadliest Baghdad bombing in 18 months, Iraqi faith that their security forces could protect them lay shattered in the wreckage. A victim of a bomb attack in a hospital cries while waiting for receiving a medical treatment in Baghdad, August 19, 2009. A series of explosions killed at least 75 people......
