Critical clarity from humanitarians
Karen Abuzayd, commissioner-general of the United Nations' agency that provides aid and services to Palestinian refugees, and Alvaro de Soto, the recently retired UN diplomat from Peru, offer critical clarity with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. BEIRUT — It is very refreshing when law, international responsibility, and human...Arabs should seize the peace initiative
In the aftermath of Secretary of State Rice's fourth recent visit to the region to prepare for a Middle East peace conference, only the meeting's proposed location has been decided. The situation looks quite bleak, with little to show for the efforts made to date. Early in her visit, Rice made an effort to tamp down expectations about...Government’s fear-mongering didn’t work
A prosecution that is likely to go down in the record books as one of the great abuses of the American legal process ended with a mistrial this week in Dallas, Texas. The politicized case against the Holy Land Foundation (HLF), an American charity providing aid to needy families in Palestine, alleged material support for a terrorist...Only Congress can declare war
If anyone doubts that the republic created by the U.S. Constitution is dead, he or she only has to watch the Republican presidential debates. Save for Dr. Ron Paul, all of the candidates believe a president can take the country to war on his own, though most concede it might be a good idea to "consult" attorneys and even...Explosion of freedoms brings responsibilities too
We are living in an era of remarkable world-wide transformation, which has accelerated dramatically in just the last few decades. The collapse of communism led to the emergence of free market democracies throughout Eastern and Central Europe. Previously marginal economies in the Arab Gulf and South and Southeast Asia have emerged as...Conference will prolong agony in Arab world
After spending many hours trying to reach Jerusalem, a trip which took twenty minutes before the imposition of the humiliating Israeli checkpoints, a Palestinian woman said: "I am dying to pray in Al-Aqsa Mosque, but after so many hours of being harassed at so many checkpoints, I was not allowed to pray and I am hungry and thirsty...November talks must be inclusive
WASHINGTON (IPS) ? To succeed, next month's Israeli-Palestinian conference here should establish and endorse the contours of a permanent peace accord and secure the participation of Arab states that do not currently recognise Israel, including Syria, according to a letter sent Wednesday to President George W. Bush from a bipartisan group...The evil that men do
Once again, the Bush administration is flimflamming the hapless Democratic majority in Congress into rushing an important piece of legislation into law without serious thought or debate about the implications. Although Congress passed a temporary extension of the FISA law in August that carries it through to February, the...Excuses keep on coming
The evolution of excuses for blundering into and maintaining the Iraq War is becoming comical. The first excuse was weapons of mass destruction. Do you remember the constant talk about weapons of mass destruction, "the worst weapons in the hands of the worst dictator"? Do you remember how President Bush said the sole reason for the...Army needs to leave Iraq, not recruit more Arab Americans
The article "Army wants more Arab Americans to serve their country", with Brigadier General Anthony A. (Tony) Cucolo III, Chief of Public Affairs for the U.S. Army, in last week's issue, was not convincing enough as to why more Arab Americans should serve their country by enlisting in the army to serve in Iraq. I don't question the...The unstated message from Petraeus and Crocker
After weeks of leaks and media preparation, after staging the event and using very vague and manipulative language hiding the facts rather than elucidating them, the reports of Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker came down to this: the United States is in Iraq to stay as long as the oil reserves in Iraq are expected to last —...
My unsung Palestinian hero
September 21st, 20070 Sherri Muzher and her late father Ead Michael Muzher.Is this really happening? I sat frozen as the Orthodox priest swung the censers during the Trisagion Service. The smell of incense filled the air and I looked passed the priest to see my father lying peacefully in the open casket. The second-half of the casket was adorned with...Convenient racism: The ‘us’ and ‘them’ factor
Racism is, among many things, convenient. It provides simplified, definite and ready-to-serve answers to complex and compounded questions. Racists, in turn, come from all walks of life; their motivation and the root causes behind their contemptible views of others may differ, but the outcome of these views is predictably the same —...The common heritage between Bush and Stalin
The cover title of the Economist August 11-17, 2007 was "Is America Turning Left?" and the answer was "Probably — but not in the way many foreigners (and some Americans) hope." The lead article discussed the negative impact of President Bush's foreign policy on the Republican Party and on the direction American people will take even...Who are the fanatics?
President Jimmy Carter was demonized for pointing out in his book, "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid," that there are actually two sides to the Israeli-Palestinian issue. Distinguished American scholars, such as John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt have suffered the same fate for documenting the excessive influence the Israel lobby has on......
Celebrating our 23rd anniversary
As we put this issue of The Arab American News to bed, on Friday, September 7, 2007, we solemnly remember that it is our 23rd anniversary. When we began The Arab American News 23 years ago, we had no idea a global information revolution was about to begin. Neither, of course, could we forsee the first and second Palestinian intifadas,...Is a citizen-led boycott of Israel morally justified?
That question is raised by an expanding academic, cultural and economic boycott of Israel. The movement joins churches, unions, professional societies and other groups based in the United States, Canada, Europe and South Africa. It has elicited dramatic reactions from Israel's supporters. U.S. labor leaders have condemned British unions,......
Anti-discrimination work must go on
Six years after the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, it is important to assess the condition of the Arab American community. Although the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) has repeatedly condemned the attacks on record, we note that the entire community is still feeling the implications of our government's policies...Let Arabs tell the truth
Case Number One: Architect and political analyst Raed Jarrar lives in America. A year ago, he was in New York's Kennedy Airport getting ready to board a plane back to his home in Oakland, California, when a federal Transportation Security Administration official told him he would not be allowed on the airliner unless he removed his...Muslims and anti-Semitism
The responsibility of the Muslims and the Jews in the West is tremendous: living together, both citizens of the same countries, they should raise their voices in the name of justice and mutual respect. In France, for example, one finds a unique situation; namely, the largest Jewish and Muslim communities in Europe living together. In...No American president can stand up to Israel
"No American President can stand up to Israel." These words came from feisty Admiral Thomas Moorer, Chief of Naval Operations (1967-1970) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1970-1974). Moorer was, perhaps, the last independent-minded American military leader. Admiral Moorer knew what he was talking about. On June 8, 1967,......
We all know the emperor has no clothes
After serving for a few years as ambassador of the United States to Lebanon, Mr. Jeffrey Feltman has finally recognized one of the many common denominators among Arab people. But he doesn't actually know what to do with the information. Based on his new-found knowledge, he has leveled accusations against some important Arab...Fear grows as Ramadan approaches
As Ramadan fast approaches, there is a nervous anticipation among charities on whether the U.S. Treasury will shut down or raid or make some announcement about another charity. Since 9/11, six charity groups have been shut down by the government after being accused of providing financial aid to groups and individuals included on the......
Make friends with Muslims, not with their rulers
The West has to learn how to cultivate relations with Islam. The affluent world must take into account the demographic, economic and political realities of Islamic societies. To deal with growing violence the industrialized countries must partner with Muslim people, not only with their rulers. There are 1.3 billion followers of the...What are we going to do about racism?
Over a month ago, I was driving down Ford Road to meet up with a group of friends for a Sunday brunch in Garden City. As I was making my way through Westland, an ice cream stand had a sign that read, “If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read this in English, thank a soldier.” I'm not sure how long it was up, but it was......