89% vote in favor of new Syrian Constitution
February 27th, 20120 Syria’s Interior Minister has announced that 89 per cent of those who took part in the referendum have voted in favor of a new constitution. The new law puts an end to five decades of one-party rule among other reforms put forward by President Bashar al-Assad. Syria's President Bashar al-Assad and his wife Asma vote during a...Salamey primed for 19th District Judge race, gets O’Reilly endorsement
DEARBORN — Attorney and former 19th District Court Magistrate Sam Salamey officially announced his candidacy for the court's upcoming judge seat this week, and he's doing so with the endorsement of the city's top official, Mayor Jack O'Reilly. Salamey, 53, served 15 years as a judicial magistrate and said that the experience gave him a...
Our endorsement: Ron Paul is the right man for the job
February 24th, 20120 It was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., perhaps America's greatest civil rights leader and one of its most trusted moral compasses, who once spoke out against America's penchant for dictating the affairs of other nations through military and other interventions. “Don't let anybody make you think that God chose America as his divine,...
Michigan primary looms as candidates fight for votes
February 24th, 20120 Santorum faring better than native son Romney in projection polls Michigan voters will head to the polls on Tuesday, Feb. 28, casting their ballots in the state's Republican primary on the same day as Arizona voters decide their winner. U.S. Republican presidential candidates (L to R) U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, former U.S. Senator...
Syria: To arm or not to arm rebels, that is the question
February 24th, 20120 WASHINGTON — Just days before the opening meeting of the new international "Friends of Syria" in Tunis Friday, the debate over whether the United States should provide more support – including weapons – to opposition forces is gathering steam. Free Syrian Army fighters look at a tank taken by defectors from the regular Syrian Army...
Tawakkul Karman: A tool for farcical democratic initiatives
February 23rd, 20120 Who is Tawakkul Karman and more importantly, how and why has this religiously-dressed Yemeni woman come to be the darling of Western-oriented democracy movements? To understand who is actually reaping the rewards of this activist, we should begin by following the money. Mrs. Karman has a non-governmental organization (NGO)...
Rise of Islamists in Syria could threaten Jordan’s political stability, analyst warns
February 23rd, 20120 AMMAN - An eventual fall of Syria's regime, followed by the rise of an Islamist government could create a quandary for Jordan, a small country that has strategic ties with its northern neighbor, analysts say. Free Syrian Army fighters pose in front of a tank taken by defectors from the regular Syrian Army in Al Qusayr February 23, 2012....Victory of hunger striker Khader Adnan partial, but memorable
The Palestinian prisoners’ movement will never forget Khader Adnan. Its history will record that his “battle of the empty intestines,” as Palestinians refer to prisoners’ open hunger strike, lasted the longest. Adnan was able to do what hasn’t been done in a long time. His story turned the cause of Palestinian political...GOP candidates need to revise approach toward Middle East
Gingrich (C) made headlines when he infamously declared Palestinians an “invented people;” Santorum and Romney have continued to make similar statements about the Middle East. The leading Republican presidential candidates have a one-sided view of the Arab-Israeli conflict.During the Florida presidential debate, a Palestinian...Arab League rolls cultural red carpet for Bahrain
An anti-government protester runs with a Bahraini flag and a banner that reads ''We will Return'' during a protest that attempted to march back to Al Farook Junction, formally known as Pearl Square, in the village of Sanabis, west of Manama, February 14, 2012. Anti-government protesters tried to march from all directions to reach to the...
UN assembly adopts resolution, ratchets up pressure on Assad
February 19th, 20120 Syrian ambassador says country is being targeted as new constitution is drafted NEW YORK - The 193-nation UN General Assembly ratcheted up the pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday by overwhelmingly approving a resolution that endorses an Arab League plan calling for him to step aside. A weapons dealer checks...
One year on: Bahraini protesters left on an island
February 19th, 20120 Gulf state's military goes in hard to prevent a repeat of clashes that marked start of uprisingThree months after a report condemned Bahrain's use of "excessive force" in 2011, the Gulf kingdom yesterday deployed armored vehicles and unprecedented numbers of troops in an effort to prevent a repeat of the lethal clashes. Three months...
The march to war against Syria: The long shadow of the 2006 Israeli war on Lebanon
February 18th, 20120 Syria has been on the Pentagon's drawing board for years, largely because of its important geo-strategic placement in the Middle East. The process of cornering the Syrian Arab Republic started with earlier accusations pertaining to the alleged development of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). From 2003 to 2004, George W. Bush Jr....Egypt to hold presidential poll in May
Egyptian man walks past a symbolic grave for former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Tahrir square in Cairo, February 16, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed SalemEgypt will hold its first presidential election since the fall of Hosni Mubarak by late May, a government minister was quoted saying in the state newspaper al-Ahram on Wednesday.The...
Nasrallah denies involvement in recent bombings, urges political reflection
February 18th, 20120 Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said his party was not involved in recent bombings that took place in India, Georgia, and Thailand earlier this month, while reiterating the party's intention to avenge the killing of its leader Imad Mughniyeh four years ago."It is insulting for Hizbullah to avenge its great leader (Imad......
Yemeni elections to be held in the shadows of Saleh
February 18th, 20120 In less than one week, Yemenis will go to the voting booth in the first time in decades to approve Vice President Abd Rabu Mansour Hadi as the consensus president of Yemen, something longtime ruler of Yemen Ali Abdallah Saleh is finding hard to stomach. A man carries a poster of outgoing Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, as he walks...
Life after Gaddafi: Libya a militia mess one year on
February 18th, 20120 Stability still evades Libya as heavily-armed militias run rampant one year after protests began to oust dictator Muammar Gaddafi and install democracy in the north African state. A member of the National Transitional Council forces wave the Libyan flag as they parade along a main street in Tripoli February 14, 2012. Friday marks the......
Kuwait Parliament: Islamists seek shari’a amendment
Kuwait’s Islamist opposition and their allies won a major victory in the recent parliamentary elections that took place on February 2.Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah once again asked Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah to form a government. The latter began consultations on this matter immediately, while the Islamists began to make some very...
Guns and diplomacy: Militarizing the Syrian conflict
February 11th, 20120 Russia and China vetoed the latest UN Security Council resolution Saturday on the ongoing violence in Syria because it leaves out sanctions on the opposition alongside those on the Assad government, and leaves out Russian proposals. Moscow says it had no other option but use its veto right, claiming the draft didn't realistically...Dearborn’s Abbatt to run for 19th District Court this year
DEARBORN — Attorney Candyce Abbatt announced on Tuesday, Feb. 8 that she plans to seek eelction as District Judge in the 19th District Court of Dearborn in the upcoming 2012 election. Candyce AbbattAbbatt is a lifelong Dearborn resident and graduate of Fordson High School, The University of Michigan-Dearborn as well as Wayne State...Saleh plans Yemen’s return to vote in presidential polls
SANAA - Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in New York for medical treatment after agreeing to step down following months of protests, will return to vote in presidential polls, a member of his party and state media said Wednesday."He will return and the General People's Congress party wants him back to attend and supervise the......
Egypt army deploys nationwide amid protest calls
Activists call for "civil disobedience" on February 11 to mark anniversary of Mubarak's ouster.CAIRO - Egypt's army on Wednesday said it will deploy troops across the country after activists called for "civil disobedience" to mark the anniversary of Hosni Mubarak's ouster, state media reported."The Armed Forces decided to deploy their...
Poll: Romney’s lead fading as Paul surges into second nationally
February 10th, 20120 Despite his strong showing in early state contests in the race for the Republican U.S. presidential nomination, Mitt Romney's support nationwide has dipped slightly during the past month, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday. Romney was backed by 29 percent of Republican voters in the telephone poll conducted......
Republican Rick Santorum sets sights on Super Tuesday
February 10th, 20120 Santorum says his campaign is now organizing in each state after wins U.S. presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has hailed his hat-trick of caucus and primary wins, saying his campaign now has crucial momentum - and more cash. U.S. presidential hopeful Rick SantorumIn an interview with CNN, Santorum said he had raised $250,000 in one...Fatah and Hamas agree that Abbas will lead Palestinian unity cabinet
The leaders of Fatah and Hamas yesterday agreed that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas could head an interim "unity" cabinet to pave the way for fresh future elections in Gaza and the West Bank.The accord signed by Abbas and Hamas political bureau chief Khaled Mashal in Qatar cleared one important obstacle standing in the way of the......