The Arab American News
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Burj Khalifa is tallest building in the world
January 9th, 20100 DUBAI - The world's tallest building was unveiled this week to an estimated on-site crowd of over 400,000 and the rest of the world, in a crescendo of fireworks, lasers and fountain displays. A general view of the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest tower, in Dubai January 3, 2010. REUTERS/Mosab Omar The official height of the...Yemeni detainees caught in bomb backlash
NEW YORK (IPS) - In the wake of the failed attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas day, legal experts and human rights advocates are pushing back against calls from politicians to halt the planned release of prisoners from Guantanamo Bay to their home country, Yemen. Yemeni Saleh Al Zoba (C), 60, a former...Girding our loins for the underwear battle
There was a time when errant children were made to stand in corners and reflect on their misdeeds. We are made to stand in lines, in our stocking feet, with our shampoo in plastic bags and our pocket change in collection plates, waiting for others to decide how much to blur their images of what's inside our undergarments. As we reflect...Muslim scholars: Seek Islamic spirit, not state
The Islamic state is a controversial issue in the West, as recent news confirms. Last October, an imam was killed by the FBI in Detroit, seemingly for allegedly conspiring to establish an Islamic state in the United States. In the United Kingdom, government officials worry that extremist groups like Hizb-ut-Tahrir have...
Great effects, tired old story
January 9th, 20100 James Cameron's latest cinematic offering, "Avatar," is an achievement in computer-generated animation. But story wise, the movie was a tour de force of clichés. It was like going on a date with Carrie Prejean - all looks and no substance. "Avatar" is basically "Dances With Wolves" 150 years into the future and on another planet....T-shirts disrupt students at Edsel Ford
DEARBORN - With dress codes in place at countless high schools, it's commonplace for administrators to force students to remove shirts with messages or graphics deemed "disruptive." But one such incident at Edsel Ford High School on Monday became the focus of intense media scrutiny as nine Arab American juniors were told to remove...Officials urge public to participate in census
DEARBORN - U.S. Census Bureau officials, the mayors of Dearborn and Dearborn Heights and U.S. Rep. John Dingell led a community meeting Tuesday at Dearborn City Hall urging participation in the upcoming decennial population count. A major focus of the meeting was getting Arab Americans and senior citizens to fill out and return the...Area Muslims condemn terrorism attempt
The Congress of Islamic Organizations of Michgian was expected to hold a press conference in Detroit on Friday at 9:30 a.m. to reiterate condemnation of religious extemism. Representatives of the Congress of Islamic Organizations of Michigan meet at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn on Monday to discuss plans for a press...Democratic gubernatorial hopeful meets with Arab American leaders
Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero met with Arab American leaders in Dearborn on Thursday at Habib's restaurant to discuss his expected gubernatorial bid. Lansing Mayor and expected gubernatorial candidate Virg Bernero met with Arab Americans in Dearborn on Thursday. The gathering was not a fundraising event but a meeting to discuss his...Community leaders meet with Sen. Levin, discuss immigration issues
Representatives of the Congress of Arab American Organizations (CAAO) met with U.S. Sen. Carl Levin at his office in Detroit on Wednesday to discuss immigration issues. Various cases reported to the regional chapter of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) and other community entities involving Immigration and Customs...
Egypt blocks aid to Gaza
January 9th, 20100 SOMETHING ODD, almost bizarre, is going on in Egypt these days. About 1400 activists from all over the world gathered there on their way to the Gaza Strip. On the anniversary of the "Cast Lead" war, they intended to participate in a non-violent demonstration against the ongoing blockade of Gaza, which makes the life of 1.5 million...Locals rally in solidarity with Gazans
With over 1,300 activists from a total of 43 different countries, the Gaza Freedom March from Egypt into the battered, blockaded territory was the culmination of over a year of frustration for those who felt they had no choice but to help in any way they could. The planned Dec. 29 march to meet and provide aid to locals inside Gaza on...New revelations tear holes in nuclear trigger story
WASHINGTON (IPS) - New revelations about two documents leaked to The Times of London to show that Iran is working on a "nuclear trigger" mechanism have further undermined the credibility of the document the newspaper had presented as evidence of a continuing Iranian nuclear weapons program. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad...
Countries, rights groups protest new TSA directives
January 9th, 20100 The Obama administration's decision to subject travelers to the U.S. from 14 listed nations to extra airport security screening has drawn sharp criticism both internationally and from domestic civil liberties groups. A security official (R) prepares to scan his colleague posing inside a RapiScan full-body scanner being trialled...
New TSA guidelines are ethnic profiling at its worst
January 9th, 20100 The new Transportation Security Administration (TSA) directives will require citizens from 14 countries, all Arab or Muslim countries with the exception of Cuba, to go through enhanced security screening. Such screening can include full pat-downs, scans, delays, and anything associated with secondary screening - an extra search of the......
Muslims misunderstood Swiss vote
To the editor: I would like to respond to the article by Ali Moossavi (Minaret ban indicates evolving fascism, 24 December). Mr. Moossavi has completely failed to understand the reasons for the Swiss vote in favor of a ban on the construction of minarets. A protestor carries a sign in Switzerland. The call for a referendum was...
2009 Year in Review
December 29th, 20090 The Arab American News' top headlines and front pages of 2009 Local • Community protests Gaza genocide • Arab American quarterback to play for Wolverines • District denies Arabic will be banned at Fordson • Jewish group selling olive oil to benefit Palestinian farmers • MLK rally highlights support for...Egypt cracks down on foreign protesters heading to Gaza Strip
CAIRO - Getting in to the Gaza Strip is no easy feat, but driving across Egypt should not be this hard. Palestinians take part in a protest near the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt December 28, 2009, against the construction of an underground barrier. Egyptian officials confirmed that Egypt is building an underground...
Nigerian-American Muslims condemn attempted Christmas Day attack
December 29th, 20090 The Texas-based National Council of Nigerian Muslim Organizations in the U.S.A released a statement condemning Friday's attempted bombing of a Northwest Airline flight into Detroit. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab On approach to Detroit International Airport, Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to ignite explosives sewn......
Fifty thousand to march in Gaza, spotlight inhumanity
UNITED NATIONS (IPS) — More than 50,000 people are expected to take to the streets of Gaza on Dec. 31 for a mass march designed to send a message to the United States, a key supporter of Israel's army, that the situation in Gaza violates international human rights laws. A man walks near a truck carrying humanitarian aid to the...
Love for Jesus unites Muslims, Christians
December 25th, 20090 "'Behold!' The angels said: 'O Mary! God giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him. His name will be Jesus Christ, the son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and in (the company of) those nearest to God.'" Palestinian schoolchildren visit the Grotto, where Christians believe the Virgin Mary gave birth to......
Locals headed for Gaza; Dearborn vigil supports march
December 25th, 20090 Since Hamburg Township resident Yusif Barakat left his Haifa, Palestine home with his family in 1947 at age 12, he’s only had a chance to go back to his homeland one time, in 1970. Heavy machinery is seen on the Egyptian side of the border with the Gaza Strip December 22, 2009. Hamas and other militant groups called on Egypt...Israel’s fictional undivided Jerusalem
Israel's near hysterical reaction to a Swedish proposal to recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state, their stubborn refusal to include East Jerusalem in their questionable "settlement freeze" and their defense of repressive policies imposed on Palestinians in that holy city are framed in language that masks......
