Arab Writers Group Syndicate

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Orthodox Easter comes amid persecution of MidEast Christians
By Ray Hanania – The only time anyone really thinks about Arab Christians is when they are needed as political pawns in a larger battle. Israel and its extremist supporters often assert that Arab Christians are persecuted by Muslims, but make no mention of the fact that Israel itself is the primary cause of anti-Christian Arab persecution. Muslims assert that “Christians and Muslims are equal” in the Middle East, but discourage any open discussion of strains that exist for Christians in the Islamic World. And the mainstream American news media often ignores or glosses over Arab Christian issues, feeding American ignorance and stereotypes of Arab Christians. Few address the reality. Read more »

Muslim-Catholic rivalry mixes Apples and Oranges
By Ray Hanania – When it comes to Muslims and Catholics, you might wonder which is the Apple and which is the Orange. No matter how you address the issue of the number of Catholics versus the number of Muslims in the world, someone will always complain. But the reality is the debate is really a hot-potato, a distraction from the reality and intended to feed to growing animosity between Islam and the West. Read more »

Don’t let violence prevent push for peace
Ray Hanania – If there is one certainty in the Middle East, it is violence. When the Arabs and Israelis have been at war, and when they have been at the peace table, violence takes place. The goal of the violence is to prevent a peaceful compromise because the extremists believe that if they can prevent compromise, they have protected their extremist belief that they can have it all to themselves. Read more »

Sharon’s Terror Child: How the Likud Bloc Mid-wifed the Birth of Hamas
By RAY HANANIA – Hamas is considered one of Israel’s greatest threats, but the Islamic terrorist organization found its beginnings in the misguided Israeli effort to encourage the rise of a religious alternative that would undermine the popularity of the Palestine Liberation Organization and Yasir Arafat. The strategy resulted in the birth of Hamas which rose from these Islamic roots. Read more »

Israel hides immoral conduct behind Congressional hypocrisy
By Ray Hanania — This week, the U.S. Congress once again threw kerosene on Middle East violence and suffering, insuring the violence will continue, not end. Approved 404 to 1, House Resolution 951 is filled with dozens of paragraphs condemning Hamas and its rocket attacks against Israel, while defending Israel’s government response which has killed scores of innocent Palestinian men, women and children. The end result is that by playing one-sided politics, Congress is helping to destroy Israel and all hope moderate Palestinians have for their own secular, independent state. Read more »

And What if Obama is?
By Mohamed Mughal – It seems that e-mail has become a negative campaigning tool in the 2008 Democratic primaries.  Voters from Iowa on have received messages suggesting Barack Obama is a Muslim.  And poor Senator Obama - he’s forced into a corner, having to publicly profess his reverence for Jesus Christ before hoards of supporters.

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Arab Americans should expand focus in presidential elections
By Ray Hanania – Once again, Arab American voters are in an election dilemma, stuck between a rock and a hard place as they contemplate whom to support in the presidential elections. Should they follow the lead of other American voters and support the candidates most likely to win the presidential nominations, Democrats Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, or Republicans Mike Huckabee or John McCain? Or, should they follow their conscience, confused by candidates’ doubletalk on the Middle East, and vote for candidates who reflect their views but can’t win? In reality, it doesn’t matter. The Arab American vote is not a vote that will change national elections. But it can be a vote that changes Arab American politics and community dynamics. Read more »

Ashamed of American Christian abandonment of their faithBy Ray Hanania — Does your mother have to be from Bethlehem before you can even bother to care for the fate of that holy city? My mother and her family are from Bethlehem. She was born down the street from the Holy Manger where Jesus was cradled more than 2,000 years ago.  Down the street from the Church of the Nativity built many centuries ago to mark that site which is revered by hundreds of millions of true Christians around the world. And now, down the street from one of the most offensive, disturbing constructions, the 26 foot tall “barrier” that Israel’s government declares is a “fence.” This “fence” is 24 feet tall and is made of concrete. It is a Wall, as even former President Jimmy Carter has said in disgust, and it snakes up and down the streets of Jesus’ Birthplace. This Wall is not constructed to protect Israelis from Bethlehem terrorism, or from terrorism from any other place in a conflict that has raged unending since 1947, but rather it is being built by Israel so Israel can steal more land from Palestinians who are Christian and Muslim. Read more »

Americans howl about injustice of others, but not their own
By Ray Hanania — The way Americans have been howling about the outrageous punishment of a Saudi Arabian woman who was gang raped and sentenced to 200 lashes, you would think that they care about how Arabs and Muslims are treated. Even President Bush expressed his anger when asked about the case. But the reality is that neither President Bush nor most Americans really care about the Saudi woman, nor do they care about her lawyer who is also being punished for defending her In reality, Americans do not really care about the fate of the young girl. The fact is the punishment is outrageous by American standards, although her rapists were all convicted and sentenced to jail time, too. For Americans, the girl only symbolizes an opportunity to bash Arabs and Muslims. They could care less about justice. How do I know that? Because right here in America are injustices that tower above the case of the Saudi girl, and they don’t care. Read more »