Saudi Arabia suspends prayers in the arenas outside Mecca, Medina holy mosques
March 19th, 20200 RIYADH — On Thursday, Saudi Arabia suspended Muslims from conducting their five daily prayers and the weekly Friday prayer in the overflow area just outside the walls of the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina to limit the spread of the coronavirus. On Tuesday, the Kingdom said it will no longer allow Muslims to conduct prayers...
France closes shops, restaurants, tells residents to stay home
March 14th, 20200 PARIS - France will shut shops, restaurants and entertainment facilities from Sunday with its 67 million people told to stay home to help fight the rapid acceleration of the coronavirus in a country where the number of cases has doubled in 72 hours. The government had no other option, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told a news...
What you need to know about coronavirus right now
March 9th, 20200 Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus: The spread in figures The number of people infected with the coronavirus topped 107,000 globally, according to a Reuters tally of government announcements. Mainland China, outside the epicenter of Hubei province, reported no new locally transmitted cases for the second straight...
Saudi’s suspend pilgrimages, Coronavirus widespread in Iran
March 4th, 20200 RIYADH - Saudi Arabia has extended its suspension of travel to the holy sites of Mecca and Medina from foreigners to Saudi citizens and residents, after it reported its first case of the novel coronavirus in an individual who failed to disclose he had travelled to Iran before entering the country. “Based on the recommendations of...
Scientists have successfully cured diabetes in mice for the first time, giving hope to millions worldwide
February 29th, 20200 So far the disease, which is thought to affect over 400 million people worldwide, is understood to be incurable. But researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis have just proved that it is possible to cure diabetes in mice in just a couple of weeks. IFL Science’s Alfredo Carpineti reports that the...
As coronavirus spreads to the Middle East, governments struggle to contain the outbreak
February 28th, 20200 DUBAI - Coronavirus cases have now been confirmed in at least nine countries in the Middle East, with the largest number of deaths in Iran, and six countries reporting first infections this past week. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) was the first country in the Middle East to report a confirmed case of the virus, officially known as...
Former long-time Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak dies in Cairo
February 25th, 20200 CAIRO - Egypt’s state-run television announced on Tuesday that the country’s former leader and autocrat Hosni Mubarak died at the age of 91. After a presidency that spanned three decades, long-time U.S. ally Mubarak was ousted by mass popular protests as part of the Arab Spring uprisings in 2011. Egypt’s State TV said Mubarak...
‘The Donald Trump I know’: Abbas’ U.N. speech and the breakdown of Palestinian politics
February 25th, 20200 A precious moment has been squandered, as Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas had the chance to right a historical wrong by reinstating Palestinian national priorities at the United Nations Security Council on February 11, through a political discourse that is completely independent from Washington and its allies. For a long...
Iraq’s PM Allawi seeks vote of confidence for new cabinet
February 21st, 20200 BAGHDAD — Iraq’s newly appointed Prime Minister Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi said on Wednesday that he has picked a cabinet of political independents and has called on the country’s parliament to hold an extraordinary session next week to give it its vote of confidence. Speaking to the nation in a televised speech, Allawi said that...
Syrian forces consolidate control of Aleppo, Russia and Turkey get pulled in to conflict
February 21st, 20200 ALEPPO — The Syrian army said on Monday it had taken full control of dozens of towns in Aleppo’s northwestern countryside and it would press on with its campaign to wipe out militant groups “wherever they are found." The advances were made after President Bashar al-Assad’s forces drove insurgents from the M5 highway linking...
Netanyahu’s political campaign in trouble as corruption trial looms
February 21st, 20200 TEL AVIV — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will spend the last days of his election campaign under the shadow of serious and damaging corruption charges, as Israeli courts announced Tuesday that his criminal trial will begin March 17. Netanyahu is expected to attend the initial hearing just two weeks after the March 2...
Senate rebukes Trump, votes to limit Iran war making ability
February 20th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate passed legislation on Thursday to limit President Trump’s ability to wage war against Iran, rebuking him weeks after a strike against an Iranian military commander and Tehran’s retaliation raised fears of broader regional conflict. Eight of Trump’s fellow Republicans joined Democrats to pass...
Dingell and Pocan call to restore humanitarian aid to Gaza
February 19th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representatives Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) and Mark Pocan (D-WI) today sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, urging the administration to immediately restore all U.S. funding for humanitarian aid in Gaza, including United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and United Nations Relief...
The EU rejects Trump’s Middle East peace plan, Israeli annexation
February 7th, 20200 BRUSSELS – The European Union rejected parts of President Trump’s peace plan for the Middle East on Tuesday, prompting an angry response from Israel, which has strongly backed the U.S. proposal. The plan, announced by Trump last week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his side, was rejected outright by the...
At least two Palestinians killed, 16 Israelis hurt in violence over Trump plan
February 7th, 20200 RAMALLAH, West Bank – At least two Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank and 16 Israelis were hurt on Thursday in a surge of violence that erupted amid Palestinian anger at a U.S. peace plan. In Jerusalem, an Arab citizen of Israel was killed after he shot and slightly wounded an Israeli paramilitary border policeman at......
Crisis and opportunity: The ‘Deal of the Century’ challenge for Palestinians
February 5th, 20200 After several postponements, President Trump has finally revealed the details of his Middle East plan, dubbed “Deal of the Century”, in a press conference in Washington on January 28. Standing triumphantly beside Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must have surely understood that the timing of the announcement, only...
Documentary director discusses MLK, Palestine and nonviolence
January 30th, 20200 DEARBORN — To commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. Day last week, The Arab American News reached out to director and producer Connie Field, to talk about her 2013 documentary Al Helm: Martin Luther King in Palestine. The film was recently shown at the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, for the second time since its...
Trump’s Middle East plan satisfies Netanyahu, offers a disjointed Palestinian nation
January 28th, 20201 WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Trump and his hard-line, right-wing ally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, unveiled Trump’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan on Tuesday. The plan has been preemptively rejected by Palestinians, who see no signs in the plan of an end to Israeli occupation and illegal settlements. Netanyahu, on...
Netanyahu formally charged with corruption after dropping bid for immunity
January 28th, 20200 Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-running prime minister, became its first sitting PM to be indicted on criminal charges after dropping his bid for immunity from prosecution in three corruption cases, according to an announcement from Israel's attorney general. The development came as Netanyahu visited Washington for the launch of......
Trump to release Mid East peace plan next week after meeting with both Netanyahu and Gantz
January 24th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The White House said in a statement on Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the White House next Tuesday to meet with President Trump about Trump’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan. Trump confirmed the news, telling reporters on Air Force One that he will release the details of the...
Trump says U.S. to add Nigeria, six other countries to travel ban soon
January 24th, 20200 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. is moving to add more countries to its travel ban list, President Trump said on Wednesday without giving details, but saying the changes would be announced soon. A source familiar with the draft proposal said the tentative list of nations included Belarus, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and......
Soleimani assassination adds new dangerous dimension to Iraq unrest
January 23rd, 20200 BAGHDAD — Iraqi Shi'a groups have exhorted Iraqis to turn out for a “million-strong” march on Friday aimed at whipping up anti-American sentiment as the United States’ struggle with Iran plays out on the streets of Baghdad. Those behind the rally have two goals in mind — to pressure Washington to pull its troops out of...
The jeopardy of media bias against Palestine
January 22nd, 20200 Jeopardy! is an American television game show that has been on the air for decades, with nearly 8,000 episodes to date. It is a trivia competition that quizzes contestants on general knowledge, and they receive cash rewards for each correct response. In a recently broadcasted episode recorded a few months ago, one question asked......
