Lebanon: A failed state?
August 5th, 20120 BEIRUT — Every day Lebanon is being plunged further into a state of general insecurity, as chaos from the war in Syria seeps across the border.Repeated kidnappings, multiple Syrian incursions resulting in the death of Lebanese citizens, and the widespread use of weapons are just some of the indicators pointing to the slow meltdown of...
Annan calls it quits as Aleppo dives into full-scale war
August 5th, 20120 • Will U.S. ramp up support for rebels? • Annan steps down with peace plan in tattersDAMASCUS - The Syrian army is engaged in a "crucial and heroic battle," President Bashar al-Assad said Wednesday in a speech published by official media agency SANA on the occasion of the 67th anniversary of the army."The army is engaged in a...
Israel pins bombing on Hizbullah to get EU terror ruling
July 29th, 20120 WASHINGTON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claim Sunday of absolutely reliable intelligence linking Hizbullah to the bombing in Burgas, Bulgaria last week was apparently aimed at supporting his government's determination to get the EU to declare Hizbullah a terrorist organization. Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu attends...
Discovering the vanished imam
July 28th, 20120 The downfall of Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi last year was greeted with great hopes for the rebirth of a nation. But there was another hope felt by many inside and outside of the country — that the end of his 42-year rule would allow some light to be shed on the fate of a charismatic Lebanese cleric.Imam Musa al-Sadr, the...
U.S. mulls options as Syrian army prepares for “battle of all battles”
July 28th, 20120 With the Bashar Al-Assad regime badly bloodied by last week's assassination of its top security officials and fierce fighting over the weekend in both Damascus and Aleppo, the administration of President Barack Obama is being pressed on the U.S. role in the presumed end-game. A Syrian rebel walks amidst the rubble of a damaged house in...
Arab World brain drain shows signs of reversing
July 27th, 20120 BEIRUT — The best and brightest men and women from the Middle East have often gone on to work for the world 's largest multinational companies in Europe or the United States. On a local level, this "brain drain" has proved difficult for the economies of Arab countries, many of which are already struggling. Today, however, many Arab...AAPAC announces endorsements for Aug. 7 Michigan primaries
The Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC) has announced its endorsements for the Aug. 7 Michigan primaries. Over the last few months, AAPAC has been conducting a series of endorsement interviews with candidates competing in the upcoming primaries. The candidates personally requested endorsements from the group....Human rights worse after Gaddafi
TRIPOLI — "The human rights situation in Libya now is far worse than under the late dictator Muammar Gaddafi," Nasser al-Hawary, researcher with the Libyan Observatory for Human Rights, told IPS.Hawary showed IPS testimonies from families whose loved ones have been beaten to death in the custody of the many militias that continue to...
Rebel bombing shakes Assad’s inner circle; Syrian army strikes back
July 21st, 20120 China joins Russia in double-veto, blocks Western resolution at UN Security Council against SyriaRebels seized control of sections of Syria's international borders and torched the main police headquarters in the heart of old Damascus, advancing relentlessly after the assassination of President Bashar al-Assad's closest...
Bandar appointment suggests bigger regional ambition for Saudis
July 21st, 20120 RIYADH—Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah appointed a veteran former Saudi ambassador to Washington as the head of the country's intelligence agencies Thursday, as the kingdom continues to push for stronger action on Syria. Bandar bin SultanPrince Bandar bin Sultan, who was popular with Western leaders as Saudi envoy to the U.S. from...
Nasrallah renews support for Assad after killing of his ‘comrades-in-arms’
July 21st, 20120 BEIRUT — In a speech marking the 6th anniversary of the Second Lebanon War, Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah renewed his support Wednesday for the regime of embattled Syrian President Assad and praised the three generals killed in a bombing in Damascus, describing them as comrades-in-arms to the resistance party. Supporters...
Egypt’s former spy chief Omar Suleiman dies
July 21st, 20120 Omar Suleiman, Egypt's former vice-president and long-time spy chief to deposed president Hosni Mubarak, has died in the U.S., the official MENA news agency has reported. He was 76. Omar Suleiman"Former vice president General Omar Suleiman died in the early hours of Thursday in a hospital in the United States," the agency said."He was...DIA asks metro-Detroit residents to vote “yes” on Aug. 7 ballot proposal crucial to its survival
DETROIT — The Detroit Institute of Arts has been a vital part of the community for 127 years. With more than 400,000 annual visitors, the DIA is one of America's most visitor friendly museums. But the DIA is at risk of closing its doors. Voting "yes" on an Aug. 7 millage ballot proposal will help keep it open. By voting "yes" on...Two Chaldeans from opposing parties vying for 30th District seat
STERLING HEIGHTS -This year a noticeable change has occurred within the Chaldean community like never before. Leading up to election season, many have pointed out the large number of Chaldean individuals who are seeking positions such as State Rep or City Judge, a drastic change from previous years when even one Chaldean individual...
Syria: A tug-of-war on the ground as world powers search for solutions
July 7th, 20120 Defection cheers anti-Assad coalition ahead of Paris meet Manaf TlasReports of the defection of a general and personal friend of Bashar al-Assad will cheer the Syrian leader's enemies at a meeting in Paris on Friday of the Western and Arab states that want to drive him from power.A source in the exiled opposition said Manaf Tlas, a......
Is the P.A. afraid of a third intifada?
The light was still too dim to penetrate the cracks in the shutters when the rooster crowed. For a fraction of a second it felt like a village. But it was the Jenin refugee camp, circa two weeks ago. There, as in other refugee camps, the rooster's wake-up call is something more: nutrition for the unemployed, as well as the longing and...
Tests point to possible Arafat poisoning
July 7th, 20120 DOHA, Qatar — It was a scene that riveted the world for weeks: The ailing Yasser Arafat, first besieged by Israeli tanks in his Ramallah compound, then shuttled to Paris, where he spent his final days undergoing a barrage of medical tests in a French military hospital. More importantly, tests reveal that Arafat’s final personal......
Snyder vetoes three voter restriction measures, signs 11 election reform bills into law
July 6th, 20120 LANSING — On Tuesday Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed a portion of the state's election reform legislation. Snyder vetoed SB 754, which would have required a photo ID for voter registration and implemented new restrictive regulations on voter registration organizations; SB 803 which would have required individuals to attest to...Iraqi American announces run in race for West Bloomfield Township trustee
WEST BLOOMFIELD - Al Zara, a Chaldean American is competing for a trustee seat on the West Bloomfield Township board. This is the first time Zara has run for public office. The board is comprised of seven members which include a supervisor, clerk, treasurer and four trustees. He is running as a Democrat in the August 7 primary....UM-D alumni Knezek seeks a State Rep. seat for District 11
DEARBORN HEIGHTS — When shuffling through the candidates for State Representatives in District 11, one might take a longer look at candidate David Knezek, the 25-year-old University of Michigan-Dearborn graduate who might be years younger than any of his opponents, but arguably has just as much credentials to take on the job. Knezek...Pessimism precedes Geneva meeting as Syrian crisis worsens
Gunmen attacked a pro-government TV station Wednesday near the Syrian capital, killing seven employees in the latest barrage of violence as world powers prepared for a high-level meeting on June 30 that the U.S. hopes will be a turning point in the crisis.Invitations to Saturday's gathering in Geneva were sent by special envoy Kofi Annan......
Muslim Brotherhood takes the reins in Egypt
June 30th, 20120 Muslim Brotherhood rises under a military thumbCAIRO — The Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi faces a host of daunting political hurdles after being officially declared Egypt's first freely-elected president on Sunday. Egypt's President-elect Mohamed Morsi receives an abaya from an unknown member of Sinai Party during a meeting with...Mohammed Morsi wins Egypt’s presidency
Mohammed Morsi, who's backed by the Muslim Brotherhood won Egypt's presidency today. His election marks a new era of hope for the country both politically and socially. His leadership comes after Egypt's former president, Hosni Mubarak who ruled Egypt with an iron fist for more than three long decades was ousted by his own people......
Russia to West: Assad’s fate is for Syrians to decide
June 22nd, 20120 Britain and U.S. offer Assad clemency and a seat at a UN-sponsored conference on a power transfer The new Western tactic to creating an end to violence in Syria is, yet again, centered on ousting President Bashar al-Assad. Britain and the U.S. are ready to offer Assad clemency should he join a UN-sponsored conference on a power...
AAPAC endorsements: A powerful force in local elections
June 22nd, 20120 Gearing up for the August 7 Primary DEARBORN - It's uncertain whether anyone has won an election solely based off of receiving an endorsement from the Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC), but the group certainly has had a history of influence in local elections during the last 14 years of its existence. It is a......