The Arab American News
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Defeat for U.S. in Iraq?
Residents gather at the site of bomb attacks in Baghdad's Nahdha neighborhood December 17, 2008. Twin blasts killed 18 people and wounded 53 in central Baghdad on Wednesday as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made an unannounced visit to Iraq, police said. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani On November 27, the Iraqi parliament voted by...Will Obama end pay-to-play in Mideast policy?
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich The incoming Obama administration is scrambling to distance itself from the scandal emanating from the president-elect's home state. It is still too early to tell how much Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's alleged attempt to sell the president-elect's Senate seat in exchange for $1 million may taint...Security Council backs Mideast peace push
Palestinian children hold candles as part of the Global Peace Rally at the office of Palestinian Legislator Mustafa Barghouti (not pictured) in the West Bank city of Hebron, December 7, 2008. REUTERS/Nayef Hashlamoun UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council this week passed its first resolution in five years aimed at giving...Interrogator appears on CBC
Damien Corsetti, a former U.S. military intelligence investigator who acted as an interrogator at Bagram in Afghanistan and at Abu Graib in Iraq, was interviewed recently on CBC. His interrogation methods were brutal and obscene, as revealed both in the interview and in other reports about his conduct. He screamed at prisoners. He pushed...
The pragmatism of ethnic cleansing
December 20th, 20080 Palestinians enter the United Nations headquarters in Khan Younis refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip December 18, 2008. A United Nations aid agency said on Thursday it had run out of flour and would suspend food deliveries to 750,000 Palestinians in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip after Israel closed border crossings....
ACC opens hearts to Iraqi refugee children
December 20th, 20080 Group forgoes annual executive party to help children have a good holiday OAK PARK — The Arab American and Chaldean Council (ACC) skipped its annual Board of Directors holiday party this year and instead offered help to a group of Iraqi refugee children. Students whose families recently came to the U.S. as refugees from Iraq...
Arab Americans making a difference in Iraq
December 20th, 20080 Company running interpreter service praises community's contributions DEARBORN — A retired four-star Army general spoke at the Arab American National Museum on Monday about the role translators from the local community play in rebuilding Iraq. Retired four-star Army General Barry McCaffrey (R) after receiving a key to the...
Man alleges racial, religious discrimination
December 20th, 20080 DEARBORN — The Wal-Mart in Dearborn has been a source of controversy for the city since opening in March 2008, and that trend continued Thursday as a $12-million lawsuit was filed on behalf of a Dearborn man alleging racial discrimination. Nabih Ayad and Associates law firm members (from left to right) Mona Fadlallah, Steve...
Muslim’s scarf leads to arrest at courthouse
December 20th, 20080 A Douglasville, Ga. woman was jailed Tuesday after a judge found her in contempt of court for refusing to remove her hijab, the head covering worn by Muslim women. Lisa Valentine, also known by her Islamic name, Miedah, 40, was arrested at the Douglasville Municipal Court for violating a court policy of no headgear, said Chris...Huge drug bust includes one Dearborn man
Three Michigan men, including one from Dearborn, have been charged in the largest illegal pill distribution scheme in the history of southeast Michigan. United States Attorney Terrence S. Berg announced the unsealing of a criminal complaint charging a medical business owner, a doctor and a pharmacist with conspiring to unlawfully...Haddad begins job as Dearborn police chief
DEARBORN — Mayor Jack O'Reilly's appointment of Ron Haddad as the city's new police chief became official on Monday when Haddad was sworn-in by City Clerk Kathy Buda. O'Reilly selected Haddad to head the department in October, citing Haddad's extensive career on the front lines and in police administration, and his far-reaching...
How sweet it is at Candy Bouquet
December 20th, 20080 DEARBORN — With so many places offering holiday centerpieces and gift baskets, distinguishing between them all can be a tough task. Houda (left) and Zeinab Chami opened Candy Bouquet in September 2008. PHOTOS: Rached Elmasri and Nick Meyer/TAAN But one thing's for sure in the Dearborn area: there's no place...
WATCH VIDEO: Iraqi journalist throws shoes at Bush
December 16th, 20080 BAGHDAD (AFP) – Iraq faced mounting calls on Monday to release the journalist who hurled his shoes at George W. Bush, an action branded shameful by the government but hailed in the Arab world as an ideal parting gift to an unpopular US president. Colleagues of Muntazer al-Zaidi , who works for independent Iraqi television station...
Carter offers to monitor Lebanese election
December 13th, 20080 Hizbullah declines to meet with visiting former U.S. president Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter shakes hands with Lebanon Christian opposition leader Michel Aoun (R) and deputy Elie Skaff (C) during a meeting in Beirut December 11, 2008. REUTERS/ Mohamed Azakir Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, met with President Michel...Car bailout falters in Senate
$14 billion deal fails over union wage cuts New cars are seen at a parking lot next to a Chrysler plant in Detroit, Michigan December 10, 2008. REUTERS/Carlos Barria A $14 billion rescue plan for the beleaguered auto industry has collapsed after the Senate failed to reach a compromise over worker wage and benefit cuts. "I'm......
Does Hebron clash signal new round of settler revolts?
Last week's violence in the West Bank reveals just how far ultranationalist Jewish settlers have gone beyond the control of the Israeli government and army. HEBRON, WEST BANK — The violence here last week that started with the Israeli army evacuating ultranationalist settlers from a disputed house was captured on film and broadcast...Nobel winner urges Obama to work for Mideast peace
Martti Ahtisaari, the former Finnish president, has used his Nobel peace prize acceptance speech to urge Barack Obama, the U.S. president-elect, to make peace in the Middle East a priority. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari Ahtisaari called the region's conflict the "world's most challenging peace-building project"......
Obama to address Muslims in major speech, Dearborn a possible site
President-elect Barack Obama is considering making a major foreign policy speech from a Muslim capital during his first 100 days in office, according to an analysis in the New York Times written by Helene Cooper last week. The article suggests Dearborn as a possible location for the speech, but "Clearly it would be cheating for Mr....Foreign policy expert: No more “blank checks” for Israel
A former U.S. ambassador to Israel said on Dec. 7 the Jewish state can no longer expect "blank checks" from Washington once president-elect Barack Obama's administration takes over in January, according to an Agence France-Presse report. "The era of the blank check is over," said Martin Indyk, director of the Saban Center for Middle...Obama plans massive public works
U.S. facing biggest job losses since 1974 Suddenly beset by the worst monthly layoffs since 1974, Americans are starting to struggle with how to find employment for the millions who are losing jobs in the recession. Should government spend billions on retraining programs, create tax incentives for businesses that hire new workers,...Iranian leaders debate Obama’s likely policies
TEHRAN (IPS) — Iranian national security officials and political leaders have been carrying out an internal debate over how much freedom President-elect Barack Obama will have to change U.S. policy toward Iran, and those who have argued that he will not be able to do so have gained the upper hand since Obama's announcement of his......
Khadir wins seat in Quebec
Who said Canadian politics are dull? Canada’s current political crisis began when the Conservative minority government presented an economic update to Parliament. The update had little to say about the economy but included some socially regressive measures. Amir Khadir The one that precipitated the crisis was a measure...Canada must reclaim its human rights reputation
Ottawa — The Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN), on International Human Rights Day, Dec. 10, urged the Canadian government to take concrete steps to reclaim its reputation as an international human rights leader. Since 2001, several incidents have shaken the belief of citizens and the international community......
End, don’t mend, the Transportation Security Administration
NEW YORK — Sometime in 2010, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will stop swiping airline passengers' bottled water and cups of coffee at security checkpoints. Instead, the agency will once again permit us to carry liquids and gels aboard planes. It's not that the TSA has finally realized mouthwash and moisturizer...American Muslims hope Obama will encourage tolerance
WASHINGTON — What do American Muslims expect from President-elect Barack Obama? What can they do to help redefine their role in U.S. society? Those questions topped the agenda at the recent annual meeting of the Council on American Islamic Relations, or CAIR, in Washington D.C., attended by more than 700 American Muslim activists......