Naim qassem biography of barack obama

  • Obama's move to distance himself from Middle East issues has disillusioned Arabs.
  • Qassem, a former college chemistry instructor, is in line to lead Hezbollah should Nasrallah be assassinated, as was his predecessor in
  • A rabbi from an ultra-Orthodox, anti-Zionist fringe group on Tuesday addressed the Fourth Global Convention of Solidarity with Palestine, held in Beirut.

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    Lebanon’s Hezbollah savors increasing legitimacy

    BEIRUT — On one point, the United States agrees with Hezbollah’s No. 2 leader, Naim Qassem, and not such allies as Britain.

    Neither Qassem nor Washington distinguish between the Shiite militant group’s political wing, which has members serving in the Lebanese Cabinet and parliament, and its military wing, preparing for the next round of battle against Israel. “Hezbollah has a single leadership,” said the year-old cleric in a rare interview with an American reporter recently.

    “All political, social and jihad work is tied to the decisions of this leadership,” he said. “The same leadership that directs the parliamentary and government work also leads jihad actions in the struggle against Israel.”

    To the alarm of Israel and the United States, Hezbollah has been enjoying increased legitimacy across the world. The British Foreign Ministry recently said it would shift course and begin talks with Hezbollah political leaders. And

  • naim qassem biography of barack obama

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    Indian-Americans host first inaugural ball for Obama

    WASHINGTON: Indian-Americans on Sunday held the first-ever inaugural ball to celebrate US' President Barack Obama's second term in office, signalling the coming of age of the three million-plus influential community that voted overwhelmingly for him.
    "Indian-Americans are tremendously important and we hope they would be increasingly visible not only in the government, but also in all parts of American life," Maya Kassandra Soetoro-Ng, the second half-sister of Obama, said, adding that the president was very proud of the Indian-Americans.
    "It is certainly a reflection of how important India is and how important Indian-Americans are to the fabric of the nation," Maya said at the ball.

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    Is Arab support for Obama fading?

    Obama’s image has been damaged in the eyes of many Arabs [EPA]

    It is no secret that many people in the Arab world looked at Barack Obama, the Democratic US presidential candidate, as someone who, if elected president, could bring positive change to US foreign policy in the Middle East.

    Such an attitude seemed strong during the presidential primaries, but since Obama’s victory in the primaries last June over Hillary Clinton, the former first lady and Obama’s rival for the Democratic nomination, Arab support for the Illinois senator appears to have faded away.

    The main reason is Obama himself.

    He has carefully distanced himself from Arab and Muslim issues in the US and abroad over the last six months.

    The Democrat has been fighting against a tough negative campaign that has tried to highlight his Muslim roots, foreign name and brief political history to portray him as a “hidden Muslim” who is part of a conspiracy to destroy America