WSJ: White House to release Israeli spy Pollard
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is preparing to release Jonathan Pollard, a U.S. Navy intelligence officer convicted of spying for Israel, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing U.S. officials.The release would end a decades-long fight between Israel and the United States over Pollard, 60, who was convicted of...At least six U.S. states move to arm National Guard offices
FLORIDA - The governors of Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Indiana on Saturday ordered National Guard members at offices and other facilities to be armed in the wake of attacks that left five servicemen dead in Tennessee. "It is painful enough when we lose members of our armed forces when they are sent in harm's way,...Flag dispute triggers clash at South Carolina capitol
COLUMBIA, S.C - At least five people were arrested on Saturday as white-supremacist and African-American groups clashed outside the South Carolina State House, where the Confederate battle flag was removed last week after a half-century, authorities said. Beginning at noon, a Florida-based group called Black Educators for Justice...South Carolina church shooting suspect to face U.S. hate crime charges
WASHINGTON - The white man charged in South Carolina with the murders of nine African-Americans at a historic Charleston church last month will face federal hate crime charges, media outlets reported on Wednesday, citing U.S. law enforcement sources. The federal charges against Dylann Roof are expected to be made public later on...
FBI says still not known if Tennessee shooting suspect was radicalized
July 22nd, 20150 The FBI still has not determined whether the suspect in the fatal shootings of five U.S. servicemen in Tennessee last week was radicalized in the run-up to the rampage, the special agent in charge of the investigation said on Wednesday. But investigators believe that the suspect, Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, acted on his own on the...U.S. officials accuse Oregon imam of hiding militant past
PORTLAND, ORE. - U.S. authorities are seeking to revoke the citizenship of an Oregon imam who they say fought with Afghan mujahideen in the 1980s and dealt with al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, then lied about his past when he became a naturalized citizen, court documents showed. The civil complaint filed in federal court in Portland,...
Muslim woman photographed with paintball gun causes scare in New York
July 19th, 20150 NEW YORK CITY - A Muslim woman captured carrying a paitball gun caused a scare in Staten Island on Friday. The woman in a headscarf was seen with four young men along Midland Beach transferring the black "weapons" between two cars. After the photos began circulating, local residents in the area feared that an attack was...Snapchat features Tel Aviv, the West Bank and Mecca in separate feeds
CALIFORNIA — On July 7, Snapchat’s live feed focused on Tel Aviv, with various people who lived in the city sharing their daily experiences. The live Snapchat story quickly received criticism and sparked outrage on Twitter because the focus on Tel Aviv occurred during the one year anniversary of the 50 day war between Israel and the...
Kuwaiti American gunman kills four marines in Tennessee
July 16th, 20150 TENNESSEE - Five people were killed on Thursday, July 16, including suspected gunman Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, who opened fire at two military-related facilities in Chattanooga, Tennessee in an attack local officials described as brazen, brutal and an act of domestic terrorism. No motive has yet been given. 24-year-old...
FBI chief: encryption emboldens would-be ISIS attackers
July 10th, 20150 James CorneyWASHINGTON — Barring law enforcement authorities' access to encrypted communications would make it easier for ISIS sympathizers to attack the United States, FBI Chief James Comey told Senate lawmakers on Wednesday. Comey testified during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on "Going Dark: Encryption, Technology, and the...Relatives of Charleston victims urge Congress to vote on gun law
WASHINGTON — Relatives and friends of the victims of last month's shooting in a Charleston, South Carolina church traveled to Washington on Wednesday to demand that lawmakers vote on legislation to expand background checks on gun sales. But their chances of success are at best considered slim. Similar legislation failed a Senate...South Carolina Senate votes to banish Confederate flag to museum
South Carolina's Senate passed legislation Tuesday to remove the Confederate battle flag from the state capitol's grounds, where it has flown for five decades despite being viewed by many as a symbol of slavery.A bill to banish the flag from the State House grounds to a museum easily passed a third and final 36-3 vote in the Senate. It...Muslim organizations raise money for burned Black churches
Eight Black churches have been set on fire by arsonists and burned down since the Charleston shootings at a historic Black church, Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which is the oldest AME church in the South. A group of Muslim charities has vowed to help the congregants rebuild their houses of worship.The network of Muslim...President Obama’s approval rating climbs to about 50 percent
WASHINGTON - After a historic week of victories on health care and same-sex marriage, along with a searing tragedy, President Barack Obama’s approval rating has climbed to 50 percent.The result came in a CNN/ORC tracking poll released Tuesday. Overall, 50 percent of respondents expressed approval of the president, compared with 47...U.S. charges fifth man in alleged N.Y.-N.J. Islamic State plot
WASHINGTON - A New Jersey man was arrested on Monday on charges of conspiring to provide support to the militant group Islamic State, the fifth man to be arrested in recent weeks as part of a broader probe in the New York City region.Alaa Saadeh, 23, of West New York, New Jersey, was expected to appear in Newark federal court......
U.S. court rules NSA can temporarily resume bulk phone data collection
WASHINGTON - A U.S. court has ruled that the eavesdropping National Security Agency can temporarily resume its bulk collection of Americans' telephone records, according to documents made public on Tuesday.The controversial program, exposed by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, was rocked in May by an appeals court ruling that...Obama signs anti-BDS bill into law
WASHINGTON — After a grueling legislative battle, US President Barack Obama signed into law a controversial trade measure that also contains landmark legislation combating the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement in Europe.The broader legislation faced an uphill battle after Obama’s usual allies — Democrats in the House...Baltimore to put cameras in police vans, review riot gear
BALTIMORE - Cameras that can record will be installed in Baltimore police vans like the one in which Freddie Gray suffered a fatal injury, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said on Wednesday.She said the cameras were among steps the city was taking after protests and rioting following Gray's death in April."We're working through a process...
U.S., Cuba restoring diplomatic ties after 54 years
July 1st, 20150 HAVANA/WASHINGTON - The United States and Cuba formally agreed on Wednesday to restore diplomatic relations on July 20, setting up a trip to Havana by John Kerry, who would become the first U.S. secretary of state to visit the country in 70 years.Sealed by an exchange of letters between U.S. President Barack......
U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling legalizes gay marriage nationwide
The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to marry, handing a historic triumph to the American gay rights movement. The court ruled 5-4 that the Constitution's guarantees of due process and equal protection under the law mean that states cannot...
Non Muslims share Ramadan fasting experiences
June 26th, 20150 Steven Urenda and Lauren UrendaWith the holy month of Ramadan now into its second week, Muslims throughout the U.S. are well into their daily fasts. But they’re not alone. A number of non Muslims have decided to participate in fasting as well.These individuals decided to partake in Ramadan for different reasons and......
Obama hosts Iftar dinner to mark Ramadan
June 26th, 20150 WASHINGTON — President Obama hosted an Iftar dinner on Monday, June 22 to mark Ramadan and to reach out to the roughly 1.5 billion Muslims around the world. The president said that the holiday dinner "is also a reminder of the freedoms that bind us together as Americans, including the freedom of religion — that inviolable...White nationalists condemn church killings, identify with shooter
WASHINGTON — Leaders of America’s core white supremacist groups have a laundry list of perceived grievances. They say the media ignore black on white crime; that desegregation has led to poorer schools for white students; that white people in the United States have lost power to black people. And while they don’t condone last......
