The Arab American News
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One step closer to unilateral sanctions against Iran
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Congress has given new momentum to a bill imposing unilateral sanctions on Iran — a move seen by many as an ineffective form of sanctions and potentially antagonistic against valuable U.S. allies on the U.N. Security Council. This comes ahead of the end of the year deadline set by U.S. President Barack Obama for...
Increased focus and growing pressure on Pakistan
December 12th, 20090 WASHINGTON (IPS) — While President Barack Obama's announcement last week that he will "surge" 30,000 more U.S. troops into Afghanistan has received all of the attention here over the past week, Pakistan appears to be looming larger than ever in Washington's strategic calculations and concerns. A mother wounded in a bomb...Muslims work with FBI on missing men
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad speaks during a Wednesday press conference in Washington on the Muslim community’s role in notifying law enforcement of potential militant activity by five American men in Pakistan. American Muslim families and civil rights leaders played a major role in alerting law enforcement about...Student stabs professor to death in New York
Abdulsalam Al-Zahrani, a Saudi Arabian graduate student at Binghamton University, has been charged with second-degree murder after allegedly stabbing to death anthropology professor Richard Antoun, an Arab American, on Dec. 4. Abdulsalam Al-Zahrani mug shots No motive for the crime has yet been identified. Al-Zahrani's...
Store owner turns around life of would-be thief
December 12th, 20090 Mohammad Sohail, alongside New York Post clippings that told his story in May, shows the letter and $50 he got from the would-be robber he sent out of his deli with $40, bread and a blessing. PHOTO: NY Post A New York store owner who showed compassion to a would-be...Obama launches Freedom of Information initiative
NEW YORK (IPS) — Advocates for greater freedom of information are expressing approval of the Obama administration's new "Open Government Directive" — but some are sounding cautionary notes that executive agencies are still hiding behind "national security" to conceal government misconduct. Jameel Jaffer, Director of the...
The hypocrisy of al-demoqratia
December 12th, 20090 So this is how democracy works? In 2004, France banned headscarves and school principals chased after young "defiant" Muslim girls who continued to cover their heads in school. Now, following a national referendum, Switzerland has banned the construction of minarets, because minarets also somehow symbolize oppression. Thanks to the...
Economic hope for the ingenious
December 12th, 20090 While jobs continue to be scarce in the current United States economic climate, the Internet continues to provide a bastion of hope for those looking for alternate ways to make a living. Mohammad Al Adham, 24, co-founded the popular video-sharing site TwitVid.com. Oftentimes, all it simply takes is an idea, a vision, and a...Old ways of fighting for rights must change
This week, we've seen a perfect example of how the rejectionists over-press their support for Palestinian rights in Europe and end up creating disasters that harm the Palestinian cause. The activists have been pressing European Union officials to declare that Jerusalem is to be a shared city. A proposal condemning Israel's expulsion of...Michigan lawmakers pass smoking ban
Michigan will become the 38th state to adopt a ban of some sort on smoking in public areas if Gov. Jennifer Granholm, as expected, signs a bill sent to her by the state House on Thursday. The ban would take effect on May 1, prohibiting smoking in bars, restaurants and most other workplaces excluding casino gaming floors, cigar bars,...Arab Americans on both sides of oath of office ceremony
DEARBORN HEIGHTS — City Councilman Tom Berry, who was re-elected in November, took his oath of office on Tuesday at city hall with the help of Judge David Turfe, marking one of the first times in history an Arab American elected official swore in another Arab American to public office. Dearborn Heights City Councilman Tom...Group distributes Qur’ans to front doors
DEARBORN — Many Dearborn residents have been wondering about the source of paperback Qur'ans found hanging from doorknobs throughout the city in recent months. A copy of an English translation of the Qur’an hanging from the front door of a west Dearborn home in November. PHOTO: TAAN The group distributing free copies of an...Beaumont hospitals enhance language services
Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak held a press conference Dec. 3 to announce a new initiative to improve language services for patients thanks to a $15,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak. The foundation is the United States' largest philanthropic organization devoted exclusively...
Dispute over veil spreads across Egypt
December 12th, 20090 CAIRO — A decision by the government to ban the veil in some academic institutions has reignited debate about personal rights. "The niqab (Islamic face veil) is certainly one of the more extreme manifestations of Islam," Hossam Bahgat, director of the Cairo-based Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights tells IPS. "But according to...Lebanese tension is expressed in demand for reform
The Lebanese have worked hard to rebuild their country after a fifteen-year civil war that ended in 1990. They do not seem ready now to take radical steps of reform. A Lebanese government official carries a ballot box in a polling station in Beirut ahead of last June 7th’s parliamentary elections. In order of size, the three......
New salon specializes in lavish beauty treatments
DEARBORN — With its luminescent, multi-colored flashing sign and polished exterior, it's hard to miss European Tanning Salon & Hair Design's newest location on Ford Road in Dearborn Heights. European Tanning Club & Hair Design’s state-of-the-art new facility (top) is on the site of a former print shop (bottom)...After Dubai World debt panic, UAE guarantees all bank deposits
DUBAI — The United Arab Emirates' central bank sought to reassure investors rattled by the debt woes of the politically-connected conglomerate Dubai World on Sunday with an announcement that it was backing all deposits in locally owned and foreign banks. Asian markets were cheered by the news, rising more than 3 percent on Monday...Immigration reform is good for economic recovery
There are signs that the nation is slowly emerging from the longest and most severe recession since the Great Depression. But a full economic recovery will require solid thinking about the strength of our workforce so that we are better positioned to produce and consume goods, contribute to the tax base, and expand job opportunities...Israel’s illegal settlements in America
U.S. Envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, was highly enthusiastic about Israel's partial, temporary illegal settlement freeze stating "it is more than any Israeli government has done before and can help move toward agreement between the parties." In fact, Israel has done more. In 2005 Israel reversed settlement construction......
Reflections on Michael Moore’s “Capitalism”
The thrift in me allowed me to wait until Michael Moore's "Capitalism - A Love Story" came out in second run theatres. It was well worth the wait. The powerful effect that Moore has on his audience derives from the personal stories he relates combined with a sense of humor that highlights the bizarre nature of our capitalist society....
Best Buy’s commitment to diversity must be rewarded
December 5th, 20090 Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY) is a specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Canada, Mexico, and China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada it operates under both the Best Buy and Future Shop......
Don’t let Department of Energy subsidize illegal settlements
December 5th, 20090 The day before Thanksgiving, the U.S. Department of Energy announced that it is awarding Motorola Israel with $900,000 for a joint energy management system with SmartSynch Inc. This contract is intended to develop energy saving technologies, but amounts to subsidizing Israel's settlement industry. Aside from energy management...The birth of punk Islam
Punk rock doesn't trigger images of Mecca during the Hajj or fasting during Ramadan. Likewise, Islam doesn't exactly bring to mind pictures of spiky haired, angst-ridden youth slam dancing to the sounds of bands like Discharge and Anti-Nowhere League, all within a subculture that's against authority and embraces chaos. Yet since the......