Bahrain court jails 4 for life over 2012 bombing
MANAMA — On Thursday, June 5, a Bahraini court convicted and sentenced four activists to life imprisonment over the death of an Asian man in a 2012 bomb attack, according to an attorney for one of the defendants.The case centered on the death of an Asian man killed in a series of bombings that claimed two lives in the tiny Gulf...Yemen: 500 militants, 40 soldiers killed in clashes
SANAA — Five hundred al-Qaeda militants and 40 soldiers have been killed since the military launched an offensive against the group in April, Yemeni army spokesman. Colonel Saeed al-Faquih told a news conference on Thursday, June 4.Yemen's military mounted a campaign in the south of the country to try to crush the Islamist group that...Prosecutor: Election of new Libyan PM unconstitutional
TRIPOLI — The election of Ahmed Maiteeq as Libya's new prime minister was conducted in violation of the country's temporary constitution, a prosecutor told the Supreme Constitutional Court on Thursday, June 4.The North African country is struggling with a political crisis as outgoing premier Abdullah al-Thinni has refused to hand...Egypt imposes tougher penalties for sexual harassment
CAIRO — Egypt approved new punishments Thursday, June 4, for sexual harassment, amid rising pressure on authorities to fight the rampant phenomenon.Until now, Egypt has not had a law defining sexual harassment, despite more than 99 percent of women being subjected to some form of abuse, according to a study by the United Nations...Kerry calls for ‘fully empowered’ president for Lebanon
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam (R).BEIRUT — On Wednesday, June 4, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Lebanon's politicians to overcome their "deeply troubling" stalemate and elect a new president to help respond to the damaging fallout of civil war in neighboring Syria.Kerry, on...Reporting on the Middle East: Please go back to the streets
Irrespective of how one feels about the direction taken by various Arab revolutions in the last three years, a few facts remain incontestable. Arab revolts began in the streets of poor, despairing Arab cities; and Arabs had every right to rebel, considering the dismal state of affairs in which they live.Few disagree with these two...
Israel in political isolation over new Palestinian government
June 6th, 20140 UNITED NATIONS — The United States’ decision to “work with" the new Palestinian government has virtually isolated Israel: the only country so far to have publicly rejected the political alliance between Fatah and Hamas.“Not a single nation has heeded Israel’s futile call to boycott the new unity government," said Riyad...
Santana commits to promote understanding of region’s Arabs and Muslims
May 30th, 20140 Santana.DETROIT — Over the years, Harvey Santana has shown steadfast commitment to defending the region’s Arab and Muslim communities against hate. He has also been a champion for promoting diversity and understanding about immigrants, and other various ethnic groups. Santana, a democratic state representative for the 9th...Sudanese woman facing execution for apostasy gives birth in jail
KHARTOUM — A Christian Sudanese woman sentenced to death for apostasy has given birth in jail, a Western diplomat said on Tuesday, May 27."She gave birth to a girl today," said the diplomat, who is familiar with the case of Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag, 27. "The mother and the baby seem to be doing OK. It's a cruel treatment to be in...Tunisia’s Jews torn between protecting traditions and assimilation
DJERBA, Tunisia — Jews and Muslims have coexisted for hundreds of years on Tunisia's Djerba island, but while relations between the two religions are good, some members of the tiny Jewish community say the atmosphere is stifling."We, the Jews, have been living here for more than 2,000 years," said Claudine Saghroun, who lives in the...Women journalists seize initiative in Gaza
GAZA CITY — “We let the men participate in the workshop discussions, but the training sessions are only for women journalists,” said Mona Khadir, who coordinates the activities of the Filastiniyat Women Journalists’ Club in Gaza. The meeting hall at a hotel in Gaza is full of journalists. What catches the eye is the row of...
Thousands of Syrian expatriates vote in early poll
May 30th, 20140 BEIRUT — Refugees waved flags and held pictures of Bashar al-Assad as they crushed into Damascus' embassy in Lebanon on Wednesday, May 29, to join Syrians worldwide in voting early in an election that looks certain to give him a third seven-year term as president.Expatriates and those who have fled the war were casting...Attacks kill 74 in one day in Iraq
BAGHDAD — A post-election wave of attacks across Iraq, including car bombings in Baghdad and a northern city, killed at least 74 people, officials said Thursday, May 29.The compiled death toll for Wednesday, with the number rising to 74 after late-night attacks, made it the bloodiest single day in Iraq in more than seven months.It was...Two dissidents sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia
RIYADH — A Saudi court sentenced a dissident convicted of sedition, rioting, protesting and robbery to death on Tuesday, May 27, in the eastern district of Qatif. The district has been rocked by anti-government protests for decades.The sentence, reported by state media early on Wednesday, is the second time in a week the death penalty...Yemeni army kills senior al-Qaeda commander
SANAA — On Sunday, May 25, Yemen's security forces killed a senior al-Qaeda leader wanted for attacks on local and foreign targets in Sanaa, the Yemeni government said, after a raid near the capital in which at least four other militants died.The government said in a statement that two officers also died when anti-terrorism units......
Libya’s two cabinets compete for legitimacy
TRIPOLI — Libya's contested new cabinet convened for the first time Thursday, May 29, defying the outgoing administration, which refuses to hand over power and held its own session.Amid the political chaos in the largely lawless North African state, the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) announced that Libya is going to the...Four Tunisian police officers killed in attack on minister’s home
TUNIS — Four Tunisian police officers were killed when gunmen opened fire on the interior minister's family home in western Kasserine region, an official with the ministry said on Wednesday, May 28.Lotfi Ben Jeddou, the minister, was not at home during the attack, ministry spokesman Mohammed Ali Laroui said. No group immediately......
66 years later, Yaffa, Bride of Sea, lives in Palestinians’ memory
I n ‘Jaffa: Land of Oranges’, Ghassan Kanafani described his exile from the Palestinian coastal city of Yafa.As a 12-year-old boy, he struggled to understand, but “on that night, though, certain threads of that story became clearer .. a big truck was standing in front of our door. Light things, mainly sleeping items, were being...Poll: Slight majority of Egyptians favor Sisi
CAIRO — Just over half of Egyptians approve of former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, an opinion poll showed on Thursday, May 22, just days ahead of a presidential election he is expected to win easily.The poll by the Washington-based Pew Research Center also found that 43 percent opposed the army's overthrow of elected President...Attacks kill dozens of pilgrims in Iraq
BAGHDAD — A wave of suicide and car bomb attacks in Iraq killed at least 29 people and wounded dozens more on Thursday, May 22, officials said.No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, which mainly targeted Shi'a pilgrims, but they bore the hallmarks of Islamist extremists. The pilgrims were on their way to the...Iraq’s Maliki wins at least 94 parliament seats, likely to remain as PM
Members of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) attend a news conference to announce the final results of the parliamentary election in Baghdad May 19, 2014. Prime Minister Nouri Maliki won the largest share of Iraqi parliamentary seats in last month's national elections, dealing a blow to Shite, Sunni and Kurdish rivals who......
MERS kills five people in Saudi
RIYADH — Saudi health authorities reported Monday, May 19, new deaths from the MERS coronavirus, taking to 173 the overall number of fatalities from the disease in the world's worst-hit country.The health ministry said on its website that five people have died, including a 28-year-old woman in the port city of Jeddah, and a...UAE, Saudi Arabia form committee to tackle ‘regional challenges’
ABU DHABI — On Tuesday May 20, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia announced, a joint committee to confront "regional challenges," in a statement published on official Emirati news agency WAM.The move came as Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal met UAE Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan in Abu Dhabi.Both......
Protests call for independence in South Yemen
ADEN — Thousands of separatists rallied in Yemen's main southern city Aden Wednesday, May 21, demanding renewed independence for the region on the 20th anniversary of a secession bid that was crushed by northern troops.The demonstrators waved the flag of the formerly independent south and pictures of exiled separatist leader Ali...Egypt sentences Mubarak to three years over corruption
CAIRO — An Egyptian court on Wednesday sentenced ousted president Hosni Mubarak to three years in prison on charges of embezzling public funds."The court orders Mohammed Hosni Mubarak to be sent to jail for three years," said judge Osama Shaheen as Mubarak looked on from a cage flanked by his sons, who were sentenced to four years in......
