The Arab American News
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Conventions and festivals fill summer schedule
SAN FRANCISCO — Palestinians from across the U.S., along with some who traveled from Palestine, celebrated the 51st annual Ramallah convention here last week. A fashion show held during the annual Ramallah Convention in San Francisco on June 26. PHOTO: Ramsey El-Qare The convention was held at the San Francisco International...
Berri re-elected as Lebanon speaker
June 27th, 20090 BEIRUT — Nabih Berri, the leader of the Shi'a Muslim Amal movement, has been re-elected for a fifth term as the speaker of Lebanon's parliament. Lebanon's Parliament majority leader Saad al-Hariri (R) applauds upon announcing the re-election of Nabih Berri (front L) as house speaker at parliament in Beirut June 25, 2009....U.S. to name ambassador to Damascus after four years
WASHINGTON — After informing the Syrian embassy in Washington on Tuesday night, the U.S. State Department announced on Wednesday that President Barack Obama will be sending an ambassador to Damascus for the first time since 2005. U.S. President Barack Obama gestures while addressing a news conference in the Brady Press...
San Francisco Arab Americans allege police brutality
June 27th, 20090 SAN FRANCISCO — Arab American community groups are calling for accountability and cooperation from law enforcement after some activists suffered injuries during scuffles with police at an anti-war protest here in March. San Francisco activists scuffle with police during a March protest. PHOTOS: Ramsey El-Qare The Arab Resource...
Spike in violence as government offers referendum on withdrawal pact
June 27th, 20090 WASHINGTON – As Iraqis witness a spike in violence after a months-long relative lull, the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has decided to put its security agreement with the U.S. to a public referendum, although the move appears to be only heightening a sense of uncertainty over the fate of the...
Carter adds weight to shuttle diplomacy push
June 27th, 20090 WASHINGTON (IPS) — Pres. Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and peace envoy Sen. George Mitchell have been moving steadily ahead with the campaign Obama launched on his first day in the White House, to broker a comprehensive and sustainable Arab-Israeli peace. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter They have...Bloody showdown looming if unity talks fail
RAMALLAH – Egyptian mediators have set July 7 as deadline for final Palestinian reconciliation talks in Cairo. The Egyptians say time is running out, and if there is no progress in July, they will no longer be prepared to arbitrate. Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal makes a speech during a rally in Damascus June 25, 2009....Seeing through all the propaganda about Iran
WASHINGTON — Iran's political crisis continues to blaze. It's still impossible to say which leaders or factions will emerge victorious, but one thing is certain: the earthquake in the Islamic Republic is shaking the Mideast and deeply confusing everyone, including the U.S. government. Highlighting the complexity of this crisis, Meir...
Democratic principles selectively applied
June 27th, 20090 Knowing things with metaphysical certainty when most of the world is operating under carefully constructed myths is painful. Why? Knowing things that others do not fosters a sense of existential loneliness and makes polite conversation about many important things all but impossible. Supporters of Iranian protesters hold a...Election law reproduces elite, preserves their power
Lebanon's June 7 national election was a box office success. It had it all: shady politicians, foreign intrigue, bribes, beautiful women, meddling religious figures, sectarian agitation, recently exposed spy rings, fundamentalists collaborating with capitalists, the poor and oppressed voting for the rich and privileged. Druze...Opposition ponders uncertain future
TYRE (IPS) — A large highway cuts through the green hills connecting Lebanon's south to the Mediterranean Sea. Here, nestled amid banana trees and colorful bougainvillaea bushes, lies the city of Tyre, a bastion of the Shi'a community and a significant base of the Lebanese opposition. Now, following the parliamentary elections and the...Arabs need bargaining power
In their reaction to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech, Palestinians and Arabs have unanimously rejected his conditions for a two-state solution. In a major political speech, Netanyahu said Israel would accept the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state only if Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish...Time for immigration reform is now
Editor's Note: This editorial was produced in association with New America Media (www.newamericamedia.org), a national association of ethnic media, and was published by ethnic media across the country this week to bring attention to the urgency of immigration reform. The White House and members of Congress must move quickly on...Seeing through Israel’s delay tactics
The growing divide between the Obama administration and the Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel's expansion of its West Bank settlements has led to delay tactics by Israel. President Obama must see through them and press his criticism or risk losing credibility among Arabs. Children of Jewish...
Mother of hit-and-run victim dies in Lebanon
June 27th, 20090 Shadia Faraj, the mother of one of two cousins killed in a Detroit car crash on May 17, died of a heart attack on June 19 in Lebanon, according to family members. She was 41. Shadia Faraj Faraj, who lived in Dearborn, went to Lebanon in May to oversee the burial of her son and nephew, whose bodies were sent there to be......
Summer festivals in full swing
An estimated 260,000 people attended the 14th Annual Arab International Festival on Warren Avenue in Dearborn last weekend to enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes of Arab culture. An elderly vendor sells worry beads during the Dearborn Arab International Festival on June 19. PHOTOS: Natasha Dado/TAAN The number was down from an...Internationally-known activist to speak at Palestine event
DETROIT — Regina Birchem, former president of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), is expected to make an appearance at an event addressing Palestinian human rights July 1 at the International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit, 111 E. Kirby Street in Detroit at 7 p.m. Regina Birchem Birchem......
Iraq ambassador addresses local aid fundraiser
FARMINGTON HILLS — About 300 people gathered in the Farmington Hills Manor last week as Iraq's ambassador to the U.S. Samir Sumaida'ie keynoted a first annual fundraising gala for local charity For Victims of War and Poverty, founded by pharmacist Nidhal Garmo. Iraqi ambassador to the U.S. Samir Sumaida’ie PHOTO: Jessica...Huge crowd turns out for ACC job fair
The Arab American and Chaldean Council’s first job fair in Hamtramck ran from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Wednesday, but that didn’t stop swarms of applicants from lining up as early as 8 a.m. for the chance to speak with employers. About 400 job seekers attended the ACC's first-ever job fair in Hamtramck on Wednesday. PHOTO: Tariq...Company urges perseverance in foreclosure fight
DEARBORN — With the potential for as many as ten million American people facing home foreclosure in the next 3-5 years, it's no wonder that tons of organizations are popping up in an attempt to help. LoanMod.com co-founder and CEO Moose Scheib started his company in Dearborn in 2006 to help save homeowners from the ravages...
New hope for Carter in peacemaking?
June 19th, 20090 Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (C front row) poses for a photo with senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh (2nd row) and Palestinian children in Gaza City June 16, 2009. Carter met the children, who lost relatives during the three-week offensive Israel launched in Gaza last December, during his one-day visit to Gaza.......
Convention celebrates new era of hope and change
June 19th, 20090 Arab Americans from across the country descended on Washington, DC last weekend for what has become an annual tradition in the nation’s capital. Former U.S President Bill Clinton with ADC President Mary Rose Oakar during ADC's national convention in Washington on June 13. PHOTO: ADC The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination...Arab festival this weekend
DEARBORN — The Lebanese American Heritage Club, the American Arab Chamber of Commerce, ACCESS and the city of Dearborn will host the 14th annual Dearborn Arab International Festival this weekend, June 19-21. The event is the largest Arab festival in the nation. The festival will occupy more then half a mile of Warren Avenue and......
ACLU report blasts terror financing laws and investigations
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Muslim charities in the United States are subject to unfair treatment by the government under terrorism financing laws, according to a new report that says the effect has been a chill on charitable giving that violates Muslims' right to freely practice an important requirement of their religion. The...Iraqi cultural attaché builds bridges
For the last three decades or so, Iraq has suffered tremendously from wars, destruction, economic sanctions, foreign invasion, occupation and the horror of sectarian strife and ethnic clashes. Perhaps the most horrifying loss inflicted on Iraq besides civilian casualties is the loss of Iraqi scientists, professionals, experts and......
