The Arab American News
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Take your census form and shove it
July 18th, 20090 The first question I always get from "Americans" is 'Why do you keep calling yourself Arab American? You are American!'" It represents the rock and the hard place Arab Americans have been pushed in to by a lack of education among most non-ethnic Americans. It's aggravated by what I call the U.S. government's split personality when...
VIDEO: Heart-wrenching documentary follows organ recipients after shooting
July 18th, 20090 In 2005, a 12-year-old Palestinian boy was killed in Jenin by Israeli soldiers who said they thought his toy gun was real. But his heart still beats, because his family decided to allow his organs to be donated to six ailing children in Israel. Palestinian Ismael Khatib with Samah Gadban, a Druze girl in Israel who received a...Behind detainee release, a U.S.-Iraqi conflict on Iran
WASHINGTON (IPS) — The release Friday of five Iranians held by the U.S. military in Iraq for two and a half years highlights the long-simmering conflict between the U.S. and Iraqi views of Iranian policy in Iraq and of the role of its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) there. Iranian officials, detained by the U.S....Israel and EU clash over settlements
RAMALLAH (IPS) — The Israeli Foreign Ministry's concern over an "unusually harsh statement" by the European Commission over Israel's settlement policy indicates a growing unease between Israel and the EU. A view shows the West Bank Jewish settlement of Adam at the north of Jerusalem, June 29, 2009. Israel's Defense Ministry...Kurds caught up in Biden’s diplomatic offensive
WASHINGTON (IPS) — The indefinite postponement of a referendum on Iraqi Kurdistan's controversial draft constitution just days after a visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has given rise to speculation that Washington may have played a role in the delay. Supporters of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) hold and wave...Problems go far beyond narrow U.S. focus on terror
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Yemen's recent reappearance on U.S. radar due to its reputation as a safe haven for al Qaeda has brought more attention to the country of 23 million and its persistent underlying problems — the least of which may be terrorism. Yemeni al-Qaeda militants Ali al-Akbari (L) and Saeed Sankar (C) shout slogans...U.S. aid convoy reaches Gaza
A humanitarian convoy organized by American activists successfully reached the besieged Gaza Strip this week. The Viva Palestina U.S. convoy was the second such land convoy to successfully enter Gaza via the Egyptian border. Activists hope that such missions will break down the Israel-Egyptian embargo on Gaza, which has made the strip...Succession issues face key U.S. allies
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Two key U.S. allies in the Arab world, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, are now both facing succession crises that may absorb, or even split, their political elites. This promises a period of political unpredictability ahead in both countries. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak It may well also complicate Pres....Israeli spy ring threatens fragile peace
RAMALLAH (IPS) — The UN Security Council has warned that the existence of a large Israeli-run espionage network in Lebanon could threaten a fragile peace established between the two countries following the end of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war. Lebanon's citizens and its security establishment have been rocked by the arrest of over 30...First Palestinian animated film
RAMALLAH (Reuters) — The true story of a Gaza woman's lost battle against breast cancer has been commemorated in the first commercial animated film made in the Palestinian territories. Fatma Barghout"Fataneh" was inspired by the plight of 28-year-old Fatma Barghout, who died in 2004, and the humiliation and...
Fire breaks out at Dearborn’s Golden Bakery
July 18th, 20090 Fire fighters wrap up a call at a Middle Eastern bakery in Dearborn Friday. PHOTO: Khalil AlHajal/TAAN Fire fighters put out a small blaze at Dearborn's Golden Bakery, 14526 Warren Avenue, Friday afternoon. Several fire trucks responded. Police on the scene said no one was injured in the fire on the roof of the building...Twenty-five seek Dearborn City Council seats, low turnout expected
DEARBORN — On August 4, from 7 a.m. - 8 p.m., candidacies for seven City Council seats up for grabs in November will be at stake in Dearborn's primary elections. The combination of a voter turnout that is expected to be low and the importance of the City Council in making crucial decisions makes the primary a key opportunity for...Community bids farewell to first Arab American fire chief
DEARBORN— Fire Chief Nazih Hazime's leadership as a safety official and as an Arab American community figure was honored Wednesday in a farewell reception hosted by the Congress of Arab American Organizations at the Lebanese American Heritage Club. Dearborn Fire Chief Nazih Hazime, second left, receives a medal from Mayor...FBI seeks to clarify role
DETROIT — Amid heightened tensions between the FBI and American Muslim communities nationwide, Andrew Arena, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Detroit Division, recently sat down for an interview with Allan Lengel, editor of ticklethewire.com, a news website that covers federal law enforcement. Detroit District FBI Special...Arab students debate U.S. domestic issues
Oklahoma Christian University in Edmond, Okla. was the host site for the finals of a debate contest involving the brightest and best high school students from across America and the world Thursday. From left, Mohammed Albustani, Faisel Altunaiji, General Tommy Franks, Dana Alaskar and Jeris Abuhouran. Four representatives from......
Al Jazeera English launches in first major U.S. cable market
HOUSTON – The English-language cousin of the Qatar based news channel Al Jazeera launched this week in the Washington D.C. area after signing its first major U.S. cable deal with non-commercial MHz Networks last week. The MHz deal means 2.3 million subscribers will now have access to the channel, adding to the 140 million...Is another conflict in Iraq inevitable?
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Relations between Iraq's various Kurdish, Arab and Turkoman ethnicities are going through a new round of complications since a provision in the draft constitution of the country's northern Kurdistan region declared a range of disputed areas part of the historical Kurdish homeland, infuriating non-Kurds in the...Questions remain about the U.S. role in Iraq
WASHINGTON (IPS) — The United States largely complied with a plan, negotiated with Iraq's government last November, to withdraw its troops from the center of all Iraqi cities by Jun. 30. Vice President Joe Biden But the late June announcement that Vice President Joe Biden will be playing a lead role in coordinating the...
Obama discredits “green light” for Israeli attack on Iran
July 10th, 20090 WASHINGTON — Seeking to end speculation about whether his administration had eased its opposition to an Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, U.S. President Barack Obama Tuesday insisted that Washington's position remained unchanged. Biden speaks to George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week. Lauren Victoria......
Some see extended olive branch for Israel in Ross appointment to NSC
WASHINGTON — The promotion of Middle East adviser Dennis Ross to a senior White House position may open the door to a more positive tone by the United States toward the Israeli government, experts believe. Dennis Ross Ross, a veteran peace negotiator known for his strong ties with Israel and his past work with a...Forget the headlines: Iraqi freedom deferred
As U.S. combat troops redeployed to the outskirts of Iraqi cities on June 30, well-staged celebrations commenced. The pro-U.S. Iraqi government declared "independence day" as police vehicles roamed the streets of war-weary Iraq in an unpersuasive show of national rejoicing. U.S. mainstream media joined the chorus, as if commemorating the......
Syria: Israel’s most valuable partner for peace
July 10th, 20090 The recent gesture by the Obama administration to re-open the U.S. embassy in Damascus and renew talks with the Syrian government was meant to lay the groundwork for a resumption of Israeli-Syrian talks under American auspices. There is indeed a window of opportunity for Israel to make peace with another Arab country, which if...
U.S. leaders asked to address growing Islamophobia
July 10th, 20090 WASHINGTON — A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group this week cited recent anti-Muslim incidents nationwide in calling on American leaders to address what it said is a "growing level of anti-Muslim prejudice and stereotyping" in American society. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said opinion......
