Senators working behind the scenes to pass anti-Israel boycott law during lame duck session
December 9th, 20180 WASHINGTON — Boycott movements have long been an effective tool for protesters, but a new bill being pushed through Congress aims to penalize people speaking in favor of one of the most popular worldwide boycott movements today: The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) is among...
Congresswoman-elect Rashida Tlaib to lead delegation to Israeli-occupied West Bank
December 9th, 20180 WASHINGTON, D.C. — Due in large part to the abundance of pro-Israel lobbying from organizations like AIPAC, Congressmen and Congresswomen in the United States have largely avoided pledging any support for Palestinians, vocal or otherwise. But newly-elected Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat from the 13th District,...
Local attorney helps Dearborn Heights man gets citizenship after 50 years of denial
December 8th, 20180 DEARBORN HEIGHTS — For Jim Pawlukiewicz, a Vietnam veteran who has lived in the U.S. since childhood, the immigration and citizenship process was a 50-year nightmare of never-ending bureaucracy, red tape and roadblocks. However, Pawlukiewicz, 72, finally had his breakthrough this May thanks in large part to his simple refusal to...
U.S. fails to win enough support at U.N. to condemn Hamas
December 7th, 20180 UNITED NATIONS — A U.S. attempt to get the United Nations to condemn the Palestinian militant group Hamas for the first time failed on Thursday because the draft resolution fell short of votes needed in the General Assembly. The resolution required two-thirds support and while Assembly resolutions are non-binding, they can carry...
America mourns the 41st president, George H. W. Bush
December 7th, 20180 WASHINGTON, D.C. — St. Martin's Episcopal Church was the site of Wednesday's memorial service for former President George H. W. Bush, a Republican and father of six, including his eldest son, President George W. Bush. Bush, 94, the nation's 41st president, had been battling several diseases in recent years, including vascular...
More than 12 million pounds of raw beef recalled due to possible salmonella contamination
December 7th, 20180 WASHINGTON — According to the USDA, Arizona-based meat producer JBS Tolleson, Inc. has recalled almost 6 million more pounds of raw beef products. This is an expansion of another recall that happened in October, when more than 6 million pounds of raw beef were declared potentially contaminated. Overall, JBS is recalling approximately...
Lebanese man fined $50 million, sent to prison for helping Hezbollah
December 7th, 20180 WASHINGTON — A Lebanese businessman sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for being an important financial supporter of Hezbollah pleaded guilty on Thursday to charges associated with evading U.S. sanctions imposed on him, the U.S. Justice Department said. Kassim Tajideen, 63, pleaded guilty to conspiring with at least five...
Study: Illegal immigrants in U.S. at lowest level since 2004
December 1st, 20180 WASHINGTON — The population of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. fell to 10.7 million in 2016, its lowest level since 2004, due largely to a decline in the number of people coming from Mexico, a study released on Tuesday said. The report from the Pew Research Center, pewrsr.ch/2Qptbid, based on U.S. Census data and other figures...
U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell elected to leadership position, appoints new chief of staff
December 1st, 20180 WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D- Dearborn) was voted by her colleagues on Nov. 29 to serve as co-chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee. Dingell will work with DPCC Chair David Cicilline (D-RI) and fellow Co-Chairs Matt Cartwright (D-PA) and Ted Lieu (D-CA) to develop the communications strategy...
Muslim police recruit settles discrimination lawsuit with city of Memphis
November 30th, 20180 MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A settlement has been reached between a young Muslim man who filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Memphis, Mayor Jim Strickland in his official capacity and the Memphis Police Department Training Academy — but it's unknown what the terms of the settlement are. Tareq Elkhayyat, an Arab American of Palestinian...
FBI: Surge in hate crimes in 2017 the largest since 9/11
November 25th, 20180 WASHINGTON — Hate crimes in the United States in 2017 saw the largest increase — to more than 7,000 — since a period immediately after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, new FBI data said Tuesday. The 2017 data is the latest uniform crime reporting compilation of bias-motivated incidents from more than 16,100 U.S. law...
For Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy every case should be treated with the same gravity
November 24th, 20180 DETROIT — Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, the first African American woman in Michigan to serve as a county prosecutor, internationally recognized for her work and a contributor to the award-winning HBO documentary “I Am Evidence”, was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame on Oct. 18. Worthy told The AANews that...
Man arrested after anti-Semitic rant on plane
November 22nd, 20180 ATLANTA — A Delta Air Lines flight on the eve of Thanksgiving was interrupted by a racist rant 30,000 feet in the air. Atlanta police said that passenger David Toaff, 37, shouted remarks that fellow travelers interpreted as anti-Semitic during a flight from Washington, D.C., to Atlanta on Wednesday. "Preliminary information...
House Democrats push to end headwear ban as first Muslim women enter Congress
November 22nd, 20180 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The first two Muslim women elected to Congress will soon be coming to Capitol Hill. And with them could come an end to a 181-year ban on headwear on the House floor. House Democrats are calling for the chamber to change its rules about headwear to allow members to wear religious garb such as hijabs, worn by some...
Iran sticking to nuclear deal, rules out renegotiation with U.S.
November 22nd, 20180 Iran has no intention of renegotiating the 2015 nuclear deal, as demanded by the U.S., Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said. Speaking at an international conference in Rome, Zarif said the Iranian people will endure U.S. sanctions. Iran sticking to nuclear deal, IAEA says, amid new U.S. sanctions Iran is implementing......
The real midterm elections wave wasn’t blue, it was Muslim
November 22nd, 20180 The Muslims are no longer coming—they are here! Well, in reality Muslims have been in America and contributing to it even before the nation was formed, since approximately 15 percent of the slaves from Africa were Muslim. But now Muslim Americans are “here” in a whole new way as a record number won their elections on Nov. 6....
Court orders release of Iraqi detainees, sanctions ICE
November 22nd, 20180 DETROIT — A federal judge ordered the release Tuesday of roughly 100 Iraqi detainees held for more than 16 months, saying the federal government cannot indefinitely detain foreign nationals. U.S. District Court Judge Mark Goldsmith granted two motions filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan in 2017: Release of the...
Fewer Arab students head for U.S. to study, report shows
November 19th, 20180 WASHINGTON — Fewer Arab students are choosing to study at universities in the U.S. than in the previous year, according to a report published on Tuesday, while the number of American students going to the Middle East has surged modestly. The Institute of International Education’s 2018 Open Doors report shows that in the last...
Mississippi Senate race may be defining moment for Black voters
November 17th, 20180 JACKSON, MS — U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith’s (R-MS) remark to a colleague that “If he invited me to a public hanging, I’d be on the front row” puts the Magnolia State at center stage for Black voters in the 2018 midterm elections. Mississippi had the highest number of lynchings in the United States between 1882 and 1968,......
U.S. senators seek clampdown on Saudis over Yemen, journalist’s murder
November 16th, 20180 WASHINGTON — Republican and Democratic U.S. senators introduced legislation on Thursday seeking to strike back at Saudi Arabia over the death of a Saudi journalist at a consulate in Turkey and for its role in Yemen’s devastating civil war. If it were to become law, the bill would suspend weapon sales to Saudi Arabia and prohibit...
Trump nominates retired general John Abizaid as U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia
November 16th, 20180 WASHINGTON — President Trump announced his intention to nominate retired general John Abizaid as U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia, after two years of the position being vacant. The nomination of Abizaid, a decorated military commander who fought in six wars and served as the head of Central Command before retiring in 2007, was......
U.S. imposes sanctions on Saudi officials for Khashoggi killing
November 16th, 20180 WASHINGTON — The United States imposed economic sanctions on 17 Saudi officials on Thursday for their role in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor sought the death penalty for five suspects in the murder. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctions were the first concrete response by the...
Stabenow defeats James, retains her seat in the U.S. Senate
November 11th, 20180 LANSING— Democratic U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow defeated her Republican challenger, John James, a 37-year-old Farmington Hills businessman, by the smallest margin since she was first elected back in 2000. Stabenow won a fourth term in a contest in which President Trump backed James. Stabenow, 68, of Lansing, won 52 percent of the......
