LAHC awards $60,000 in scholarships to 20 local students, honors Michigan officials with the Excellence Awards
June 15th, 20250 DEARBORN – The nonprofit organization Leaders Advancing and Helping Communities (LAHC) awarded $60,000 in scholarships to 20 high-achieving high school graduates from the Dearborn area and honored several high-ranking Michigan officials during its 42nd Annual Awards Gala, held Tuesday evening at the Henry Hotel in Dearborn. The event...
Dearborn bids farewell to transformative Henry Ford College President Russell Kavalhuna
June 15th, 20250 DEARBORN – On the eve of Henry Ford College President Russell Kavalhuna’s transition to the presidency of Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo in July, The Arab American News Publisher Osama Siblani and longtime community leader and activist Ali Jawad hosted a farewell dinner in his honor, in recognition of his leadership and...
Dearborn to enforce new food truck regulations to address safety and fair competition
June 15th, 20250 DEARBORN – Over the past few years, food trucks have gained widespread popularity in Dearborn, with the city now hosting more than 30 licensed trucks offering a wide range of fast foods, such as shawarma, burgers, fried chicken, tacos, hot dogs and more. However, beginning in early September, the city will begin implementing new...
Students, CAIR slam U of M for covert surveillance, harassment and intimidation of pro-Palestine voices on campus
June 15th, 20250 ANN ARBOR — The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) is demanding an independent and transparent investigation into allegations that the University of Michigan deployed undercover investigators to surveillance, intimidate, and harass pro-Palestinian students on campus. “U of M Ann Arbor being...
State cancels $20 million grant to Fay Beydoun’s “Global Link International”; fate of Initial $10 Million disbursement remains unclear
June 14th, 20250 LANSING — The Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) recently announced the cancellation of a $20 million state grant awarded to Global Link International, an organization headed by Arab American businesswoman Fay Beydoun. The decision came just one day after the agency received a request for information regarding the...
Michigan man faces federal charges after he misses his flight, then made a bomb threat to delay it
June 14th, 20250 ROMULUS — A man in his twenties from Monroe is facing federal charges that could land him in prison for several years after making a false bomb threat in an attempt to delay a departing flight for which he was late. The incident occurred on the morning of Thursday, June 5, when the man called in a hoax about an explosive device aboard...
Dearborn Heights man faces 30 years in prison for alleged sexual assault, harboring of teen girl
June 14th, 20250 DEARBORN HEIGHTS – Wayne County prosecutors filed multiple felony charges against a 62-year-old Arab man from Dearborn Heights last week for allegedly harboring a 16-year-old runaway girl, sexually assaulting her and providing her with marijuana. The teen had reportedly escaped from a juvenile facility in Dearborn Heights in mid-March...
Dearborn man leads Dearborn police on tense chase after alleged domestic violence assault
June 13th, 20250 DEARBORN — Dearborn police responded to a domestic violence incident that escalated into a police chase across two days. The suspect is Dearborn resident Ali Ahmed Zbib, 55. Reports state that after allegedly assaulting a 42-year-old woman at the residence in the 5000 block Argyle Street, Zbib fled the scene. After the incident...
Michigan State University agrees to pay $29.75 million to three students injured in 2023 mass shooting
June 13th, 20250 EAST LANSING — Attorneys for Michigan State University announced on Tuesday that the university has reached a nearly $30 million settlement to compensate three students who survived the mass shooting on campus in East Lansing in 2023. Attorneys Mick Grewal and Scott Weidenfeller of Okemos-based Grewal Law stated that a $14.25 million...
Dearborn Summer Market returns with local vendors, live music, food and more
June 12th, 20250 DEARBORN — Mark your calendar- Dearborn's Summer Market returns. On the second Friday of June, July and August, the heart of West Dearborn will buzz with food, fun, music, and community engagement. Located in the heart of West Dearborn at Dearborn PEACE Park West, the market returns this Friday June 13 from 4-8 p.m. The market, free...
Dr. Khaldoon Alaswad returns to Syria for medical mission 15 years after threat of arrest
June 6th, 20250 After the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024, Dr. Khaldoon Alaswad returned to Syria that same month for the first time in 15 years after being threatened with an arrest in 2009. He spent three days visiting his family. What he saw on the ground devastated him. He said his family's homes were hit; his grandfather's home...
Arab American police officer sues Melvindale Police Department for alleged discrimination
June 6th, 20250 An officer with the Melvindale Police Department is suing the department and the city, claiming that he was harassed and discriminated against because he is Muslim. Marko Law, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of Corporal Hassan Hammoud, alleged the officer was targeted for reporting misconduct, creating a hostile work...
Hamtramck showdown: City manager sues Council with 256 allegations amid explosive claims of corruption against police chief
June 6th, 20250 HAMTRAMCK – Following his placement on temporary administrative leave by unanimous vote of the Hamtramck City Council on May 27, City Manager Max Garbarino fulfilled his earlier warning by filing a lawsuit on Monday against Hamtramck and its City Council. The lawsuit, submitted to Wayne County Circuit Court, includes 256 allegations of...
Pork on pizza, slurs at pickup: Domino’s in Waterford accused of Islamophobia
June 6th, 20250 WATERFORD — The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Michigan) has filed a civil rights complaint with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, accusing a Domino’s Pizza outlet in Waterford of violating the constitutional rights of two Muslim women and their children following an alleged incident of...
Arab American Civil Rights League celebrates its founding and confronts today’s challenges: “We remain committed to achieving justice”
June 6th, 20250 DEARBORN – Under the theme “Fight for Justice” the Arab-American Civil Rights League (ACRL) held its 13th Annual Gala at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn, drawing a large crowd that included public officials, civil rights activists and representatives from numerous communities across Metro Detroit,......
Dearborn man pleads guilty in federal gun charge after threatening Jewish temple visitors in Detroit area
May 30th, 20250 DETROIT – A Dearborn man has pleaded guilty to a federal firearms charge that could carry a prison sentence of up to 15 years, more than two years after he threatened to kill visitors at a Jewish temple in Oakland County and attempted to illegally purchase firearms. Hassan Chokr, 37, admitted on Tuesday to possessing a firearm...
City Manager Garbarino suspended as Hamtramck crisis deepens
May 30th, 20250 In a dramatic escalation of the political and administrative crisis gripping Hamtramck, the City Council unanimously voted on Tuesday to place City Manager Max Garbarino on paid administrative leave. The decision came just days after his controversial move to place Police Chief Jamil Altaheri on temporary leave following allegations of......
Livonia proposes $150 million bond on August 5 ballot to fund new police HQ, library and fire station upgrades
May 30th, 20252 Livonia – The City Council has unanimously approved a ballot proposal for the August 5 election that would allow residents to vote on a $150 million tax initiative aimed at funding major construction and revitalization projects across the city. The proposal includes building a new police headquarters, a modern public library and...
A group at WSU is using barbershops to educate Arab American men about colon cancer
May 29th, 20250 DETROIT — Volunteers at Wayne State University are working to inform Arab American men about colon cancer and how to get properly screened for it, specifically targeting those aged 45 and older through a program called Trimming the Risks. As medical research in the MENA (Middle Eastern North African) category is incomplete, this...
Michigan lawmaker pushes a bill to ban artificial dyes, additives in school food
May 29th, 20251 A Michigan state representative has introduced a bill to ban several ingredients and synthetic food dyes from school foods starting next summer. The list includes four ingredients: brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben and titanium dioxide; and five dyes: Red 40, Green 3, Blue 1, Blue 2 and Yellow 6. Supporters...
This is how Sterling Heights aims to redefine the city’s commercial landscape
May 28th, 20250 STERLING HEIGHTS – As part of its efforts to revitalize business developments across the city, the Sterling Heights City Council is expected to approve a new ordinance that would broaden the types of businesses permitted to operate within more than 20 commercial plazas and strip malls located at nine key intersections throughout the......
Syrians in Metro Detroit celebrate end of U.S. sanctions, hail dawn of a “New Syria”
May 23rd, 20250 DEARBORN – Syrians in the Detroit area gathered Sunday in front of the Henry Ford Centennial Library in Dearborn to celebrate the lifting of U.S. sanctions on Syria. They expressed their gratitude to world leaders who contributed to giving the country a new opportunity to recover from the effects of the devastating war — foremost...
Dearborn approves Fūsus surveillance system to fight crime amid fears of targeting activists and immigrants
May 23rd, 20250 DEARBORN – In an effort to enhance public safety and combat crime, the Dearborn City Council approved a $720,000 five-year contract last month with Axon to implement the Fūsus real-time surveillance system. The program will allow police to access emergency calls and live camera feeds from participating businesses and residents — a......
Hamtramck turmoil: Police chief placed on leave amid explosive misconduct allegations as city manager warns against political retaliation
May 23rd, 20252 Hamtramck City Manager Max Garbarino’s decision to place Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri on temporary administrative leave pending investigations into serious misconduct allegations has sparked a wave of controversy across social media. Supporters of Altaheri, who is of Yemeni descent, denounced the move as retaliatory and unprofessional....
Dearborn invests in East and South sides with housing, businesses grants, and infrastructure projects
May 23rd, 20250 By Mohammed Rezq The City of Dearborn hosted its first public meeting on May 8, 2025, for the groundbreaking W. Warren Transformation Project. This initiative was made possible through Mayor Abdullah Hammoud's successful effort in securing a $24.8 million "Safe Streets for All" grant, along with the vital support of Representative......
