Author Archives: Arab America

It’s no secret that the biggest names in Arabic showbiz are rolling in some serious dough, thanks to the insane amounts of money they make from their music, acting, product endorsements and media interviews.

But while entire websites and TV reports are dedicated to revealing Hollywood stars’ net worths, Arab celebrities tend to be a little bit more secretive about how much they take home at the end of the year.

Thanks to Al Watan Voice news though, we can now tell you who sits on top of the “richest Arab celebs” list and who was already a Richy Rich before shooting to fame.

Warning: The following figures may get you totally depressed about your  humble salary and on the hunt for a job in showbiz.

1. Saudi Arabian singer Mohammed Abdo claims the number one spot with a mighty net worth of $533.3 million USD. Clearly, his nickname “The Artist of Arabs” didn’t come from nowhere!

2. Coming in at number two is Lebanon’s sex kitten Haifa Wehbe, who’s allegedly worth $57 million USD. The singer-turned-actress is famous for her controversial acting roles and sensual music videos.

3. Egyptian singer and actor Amr Diab is super fly with a net worth of $42 million USD. Diab has been in the business since 1986 and hasn’t stopped since.

4. Everybody’s sweetheart Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram is a multi-talented superstar with a cool $41.2 million USD in the bank, thanks to her successful track record of albums and product endorsements.

5. Lebanese superstar Elissa follows closely behind with an estimated fortune of $41 million USD. Elissa is famous for her classic vocals and revealing wardrobe, which has clearly helped her reach number five on this list.

6. Another Lebanese diva with a whopping $34 million USD to her name is multi-Platinum, best-selling recording artist Najwa Karam. The future is sure bright for the Middle East’s “The Sun of Song.”

7. Surprisingly, the Arab world’s most iconic living singer Fairuz is reportedly only worth $29.5 million USD. The “Jewel of Lebanon” has over 1500 songs to her name and is still performing live to this day at the age of 79.

8. Next is another icon: Majida el Roumi. Commonly known in the Arabic region as “The Angel of Arabic Music” and “The Artist of Elites,” the classy Lebanese superstar is worth $28 million USD.

9. Egyptian singer Hani Shaker’s name may be unfamiliar to most Western admirers of Arabic music, but his large Arab fan base has made him a millionaire with a fortune of $28 million USD.

10. George Wassouf ‘s unique voice and classic songs made him a household name and a fortune worth $27 USD.

11. Tall, dark, handsome and wealthy, we’re of course talking about Iraqi superstar Kazem el Saher. The “Caesar of Arabic Song” sleeps well at night with a handsome $25 million USD in the bank.

12. Saudi Arabian singer and producer Rashed el Majed has been active since 1984 and is today worth $11.4 million USD.

As for Emirati singer Ahlam, AKA “Queen Ahlam,” we had to put her in a category of her own. The diva was born to a billionaire family with a golden spoon in her mouth, and it is not known exactly how much she’s made from her successful singing career and other projects.

After reading this list, we’re off to audition for Arabs Got Talent now!

Source: www.albawaba.com

Mohammed Fairouz’s Zabur, commissioned by the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, wasn’t just about new notes strung together but bold statements — about war, suffering and hope. Fairouz, an Arab American, drew inspiration from current and ongoing events in the Middle East, and from the Psalms, which are included or acknowledged as important holy writings in all three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Islam, and Christianity).

Zabur, a war requiem, is set in a shelter, where Daoud (or David, as you might know him from the Old Testament) sings of what is happening outside, in the war zone of Syria, with his friend Jibreel (Gabriel). The first notes were of the entire chorus singing “Ah!” which was like a heartwrenching plea for help, the kind that can only come from the most gruesome of horrors. That, along with the cacophony of the orchestra was as intense an opening as I’ve ever heard. Daoud then sung of the atrocities happening outside, (libretto by Najla Said and Fairouz). Baritone Michael Kelly poured himself into the work as if he’d seen some of the horrors in person; to hear such emotive singing was uplifting, even though the subject matter was uncomfortable and troubling. The Indianapolis Children’s Choir singing the part of the children in the shelter was quite haunting, as they sung of infants crying.

Musically speaking, Fairouz at times reminded me of Philip Glass’ minimalism, with oscillating minor thirds and arpeggios scattered throughout the work, which created a feeling of consistency, albeit an uncomfortable consistency given the subject matter. In Part 2 of the work, Jibreel sings with Daoud, and is an encouraging, hopeful voice during all that is going on. Tenor Dann Coakwell’s bright, clear voice was ideal for the part. The work ends with Psalm 102 (“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry come unto thee”), with a reiteration of the initial “Ah!” This work, more than heard, was deeply felt. To have such a moving piece be commissioned and premiered by group here in Indianapolis is an encouragement to all of us who want to see its arts scene continue to stretch and grow.

The second half of the evening was Faure’s Requiem, probably one of the best loved requiems ever written. The performance had a graceful, luminous quality, coupled with a feeling of respect befitting a requiem. Baritone Kelly was well suited to this part, particularly as he sang the Libera Me, praying to be delivered from a forever death.

The ISC and ISO collaborate often, and this evening was a solid combination of the two groups. The concert was, in many respects, a best of the best, not just in terms of the skilled ensembles, but because of the music — and the messages of hope contained within.

Source: www.nuvo.net

NORTH NEWTON, KAN. – When telling the story of Bethel’s long tradition of mathematics excellence, one place to start is with Samir Khabbaz.

The Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is the Distinguished Achievement Award winner for 2015.

Khabbaz was the first Bethel student ever to take the Putnam exam, considered the most prestigious mathematical competition in the world. But it was a miracle he got to Bethel at all.

Khabbaz was determined to study math outside his native Palestine. As a high school student in Jerusalem, he needed to pass a test to be able to go to the University of London, but he had had no calculus.

So he went to the bookstores in Jerusalem’s Old City, found a book on calculus, taught it to himself and passed the entrance exam.

He didn’t make it to the University of London. In 1948, Khabbaz and his family were uprooted from their home in what is now the state of Israel by the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

He came to the United States with a Jordanian passport in 1950 to attend Bethel College after he heard about it from Mennonite relief workers in a refugee camp in Jordan.

Khabbaz had been at Bethel for a year when, in fall 1951, he was a student of Arnold Wedel, a young professor teaching his first college calculus class. Wedel recognized Khabbaz’s exceptional mathematical abilities and had him take the Putnam in fall 1953.

Khabbaz’s score ranked him 64th in the nation. After graduating from Bethel in 1954, he went on to earn a master’s degree and Ph.D. at the University of Kansas and to teach and do research in algebra, topology and related branches of mathematics for many years at Lehigh University.

Khabbaz is connected to two other markers on the Bethel math history timeline. His younger brother, Nabil, was a member of Bethel’s first-ever Putnam team, in 1959. The highest-scoring Putnam team to date competed in 1964 and one of its members, Elias Toubassi, went on to do his Ph.D. work at Lehigh University under Samir Khabbaz.

Khabbaz spent one semester as an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, before he began teaching at Lehigh University in the fall of 1960.

In the summers of 1960 and 1961, Khabbaz did research under the National Science Foundation and in 1962, he won an Office of Naval Research Associateship to be carried out at Yale University, which he did from 1962-64.

Sabbaticals and conference speaking invitations have taken Khabbaz across the country, from New York to Hawaii, as well as around the world. He spent one year with the Liverpool (England) Symposium on Singularities. He has spoken at conferences in Canada, Jordan, Tunisia, Italy, the former Soviet Union, Germany, Curaçao and Hungary, but still remembers with great fondness two invitations from his alma mater. He gave two talks (one technical, one for a general audience) as part of Bethel’s centennial celebration in 1988, and accepted a similar invitation in 1994.

In addition to his decades of teaching and research, Khabbaz’s alumni award recognizes his service to the Arab-American community in northeast Pennsylvania and to Arab mathematical scholarship globally.

Khabbaz served on the International Advisory Committee for the Union of Arab Physicists and Mathematicians throughout the founding years, in the early 1980s, of the Arab Journal of Mathematics. He was the first U.S. editor of “the mathematics journal of the Arab world.”

Khabbaz organized a weekly radio program on WMUH-FM (Muhlenberg College, Allentown) with the goal of bringing Arabic music and culture to the Lehigh Valley. This earned him an achievement award from the Lehigh Valley Community Broadcasters Association in 1991. He originated a similar program on public radio, WDIY-FM, Allentown, in the mid-1990s.

He served the Arab-American Cultural Association, as president and a board member, between 1981-90. The organization served about 10,000 families with Arab ties in the Allentown and Bethlehem areas.

Khabbaz received a 2002 award of appreciation from Americans of Arabic Heritage “for the noble service you provided the Arab Americans of the Lehigh Valley.” He is a member of the board of directors of Americans and Palestinians for Peace.

Khabbaz lives in Richlandtown, Pennsylvania, and is married to Shirley (Dean) Khabbaz. They are the parents of three children, Tani, Dar and Brian (Tani and Brian are deceased).

The Bethel College Alumni Association presents the Distinguished Achievement Award to acknowledge character and citizenship, achievement in a chosen profession or vocation, and work of benefit to humanity.

Khabbaz will receive the award and be honored along with other alumni award winners at the annual Alumni Banquet, June 6 at noon.

Price for the banquet is $22.50 per person if paying by May 22, $25 regular price May 23-27. To make a reservation, visit or phone Thresher Bookstore in Schultz Student Center, 316-284-5205. Payment or credit card information is required when the reservation is made. No refunds can be given after May 29, since after that Alumni Office will have been charged for reserved meals.

Bethel College is the only private, liberal arts college in Kansas listed in the 2014-15 Forbes.com analysis of top colleges and universities in the United States, and is the highest-ranked Kansas college in the Washington Monthly annual college guide for 2014-15. The four-year liberal arts college is affiliated with Mennonite Church USA. For more information, see www.bethelks.edu.

Source: www.bethelks.edu

Arabic music fills the air as Adam Alharbi fiddles with the sound system, making sure it’s just right. Hamzah Sharif and two other men hammer Yemeni flags to sticks of plywood. This is so they will be able to hold their flags up high, showing support for their country.

Alharbi, Sharif, and six others assembled a protest in front of the Henry Ford Centennial Library Saturday. The call to action was for the country of Yemen, which has been amidst a civil war for the past month.

“This group is attacking all the cities. They’ve bombed the houses, the mosques; killed the people. It’s sad,” said Sharif about the state of his former home.

The group Sharif is referring to is the Houthis, a Shiite militia that has taken over four Yemeni cities in the past seven months. In September, the rebel group began to seize control over the Yemeni capital Sanaa, which would later lead to then President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi being placed under house arrest, CNN reports. In January, Hadi fled to Aden, the country’s second-largest city. The Houthis followed soon after, eventually forcing Hadi and his team to resign and live in exile in Saudi Arabia.

The group, which is loyal to Hadi’s predecessor Ali Abdullah Saleh, has quickly taken over the southern part of Yemen, where the majority of residents are Sunni Muslim. In addition to the capitol and Aden, Sharif said the Houthis have taken over the cities Taiz, Marib and Dhalea.

Since last month, a Saudi-led coalition have attempted to overthrow the Houthis. The campaign, titled Operative Decisive Storm, have launched several air strikes to Houthi-controlled areas. With ties to Iran, along with the backing of the Yemeni army, the Houthis remain in the war-ridden country.

The conflict has caused more than 1,000 casualties in the past month, according to the United Nations. The residents still alive must deal with the constant bombings, along with no electricity and dwindling food and water supplies said Sharif.

“Of course, this is something we don’t accept as Yemeni people” Sharif said about Saudi Arabia’s involvement with the war in Yemen. “But people are saying, there’s no other way.”

A crowd of about 50 Yemeni Americans and other Arab Americans slowly began to arrive at the library at 3 p,m,, the start time of the protest. Many people carried the Yemeni flag with them, while others also had American flags. Protesters also held up signs that expressed their opposition over the Houthis and former President Saleh. Such signs read “Houthis Equal Terrorists”, Yemen Belongs to the People”, and Yemen Most Wanted” with a picture of Saleh in the middle.

About 20 minutes into the event, Dearborn Police were called to the library. Alharbi then explained to the officer that he already received permission from the city to hold the protest. Five minutes later, the officer left and Alharbi resumed chanting with the crowd in Arabic.

Source: www.pressandguide.com

The Rasmea Defense Committee is angered to have learned today that the Michigan-based Arab-American Civil Rights League (ACRL) will be presenting U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade with an award at its upcoming “Justice Award Tribute” event Friday, May 1st, in Detroit, MI. This award comes on the heels of McQuade’s supervision of the unjust arrest, trial, and conviction of our beloved community icon Rasmea Odeh.

McQuade directed the prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Tukel, in which he repeatedly referred to Rasmea as a “terrorist” and consistently questioned the validity of her torture at the hands of the Israeli military. McQuade also signed off on a pre-trial motion to Judge Gershwin Drain, referring to Rasmea’s supporters who had demonstrated in front of the federal courthouse as “mobs and hoards [sic].” A prosecutor who chooses to use this language to describe our community should not be awarded by an Arab organization that alleges to protect our civil rights.

In fact, the ACRL was troubled, at the time, by Rasmea’s post-conviction detention pending sentencing, and wrote a statement asking the judge to release her. The publication of the statement begs the question: why honor the very woman who was responsible for Rasmea’s incarceration? What of Rasmea’s civil rights? What of the civil rights of the countless other community members entrapped and railroaded to prison by the U.S. government, both in and outside of Michigan, over the past fifteen years of the U.S.’ domestic “War on Terror”?

We are asking Rasmea’s supporters to take the following action steps to ensure that our voices are heard.

Demand that the Arab-American Civil Rights League immediately withdraw its award to Barbara McQuade.

Call the ACRL’s Chairman of the Board, Nabih Ayad at 313-633-0231. Demand he rescind his invitation to McQuade. and that the Arab-American Civil Rights League immediately withdraw its award to Barbara McQuade. (Note: the phone rings a LONG time before the voicemail kicks in.)
Tweet the ACRL at @ACRLMICH demanding the same; and
Write the ACRL a Facebook message at https://www.facebook.com/acrl.michigan
Thank you,

Rasmea Defense Committee

www.justice4rasmea.org

Source: www.fightbacknews.org

Selma Heyak looks ravishing in Elie Saab Haute Couture as she steps out onto the red carpet Monday night in Beirut, Lebanon.

Heyak slips into this fully-embroidered gown glamorously, exposing a bit of cleavage in this gorgeous off the shoulder V-neckline. She wears the stripped ribbing on along the bust with ease.

Saab describes this gown as “powder blue,” not silver. Heyak brings out the subtle blue undertones of the dress by pairing it with a transparent blue crystal ring.

The embroidered designs on the skirt are tulips, ideal for a spring dress. If you’re looking for a spring gown with a lot of Hollywood glamour and a little price tag, look no further than Aidan Mattox and Adrianna Papell’s designs. Look below for more.

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Fareed Zakaria, celebrity journalist and host of the CNN program GPS, faced off with media mogul Haim Saban on the issue of Israel on Monday night at the Peninsula Beverly Hills. The choreographer of this rather tense yet amicable exchange was Nicolas Berggruen, who brought together a select group from the media, entertainment and political worlds to celebrate Zakaria’s new book In Defense of a Liberal Education, published last month by W.W. Norton and Co.

Zakaria, who has been labeled by Esquire as the “most influential foreign policy advisor of his generation,” was forced to shift gears from his discussion of education in America in order to respond to Saban’s allegation that he does not understand the situation with Israel. Saban, a major supporter of Hillary Clinton and the Democratic party, was handed the mic following Zakaria’s remarks about the new book and got straight down to business: “Speaking of education, I think you need an education about what Israel really is.” Saban went on to say: “Your point of view is so anti-Israel, I’m banging my head against the wall every time I watch you. And I keep watching because I am a masochist, right?” Saban pledged to spend as much time as necessary with Zakaria to help him understand the realities Israel is facing. He then re-stated his challenge with some levity: “Your program is very, very unbalanced. We have ‘fair and balanced’ on Fox News, so let them have that,” he said, drawing moans from the crowd. “But seriously, Fareed. I think that you need to go through some change — I need to convert you.”

Responding to Saban’s challenge to his understanding of Israel, Zakaria gave a concise, impassioned history of the country, then outlined the issues it must address as a democracy with regards to the Palestinians, referring to the situation as a “creeping cancer that has grown larger and larger and larger.” Finally, he confronted Saban by saying, “Frankly, Haim, I don’t give a damn if you think taking that position is anti-Israeli. I think it is more pro-Israeli than you because I think you are selling the country down the river by continuing to say that whatever the Likudniks want is the right answer — no matter what — and kick the problem down the road hoping one day we’ll sort it out. One day, you will have 10 million people who are living without a vote. No,” he continued as Saban requested the microphone. “The beauty of this, Haim, is that I have the mic, and as Ronald Reagan once said, ‘I paid for this microphone.’ Actually, Nicolas paid for it.”

The contentious exchange nearly overshadowed the topic of Zakaria’s book: education. His new treatise outlines his idea that America has come to dominate the global marketplace in part because of the broad-based, liberal education program that the nation pioneered. He expresses real concerns in the book that recent attacks on collegiate humanities programs threaten a system that promotes independent thinking and instills innovative problem-solving that nurtures the entrepreneurial spirit.

Source: www.hollywoodreporter.com

The conflict zones of the Middle East are a long way from the United States-Mexico border, which has experienced its own share of violence. In El Paso, a university ensemble has united musicians from both regions to play melodies rarely heard on the border.

The zurna is the Middle Eastern oboe. It’s a simple wood horn that’s played at weddings, store openings and whenever someone returns from a pilgrimage to Mecca. 

“It’s an instrument that was used by the Ottoman empire to intimidate other troops,” said Andrea Shaheen, a music professor at the University of Texas at El Paso.

Today its blunt, nasal sound transports Shaheen back to her family’s native Syria, where she studied as a Fulbright scholar in 2010, a year before the country erupted in violence. Shaheen played with the Syrian National Symphony and wandered the countryside learning folk music.

“It was a very vibrant musical scene,” she said.

But since 2011, religious and sectarian war has killed more than 220,000 people in Syria. More than 6 million are refugees. The fighting has disrupted life for everyone including the musicians Shaheen befriended.

“I see on Facebook some mornings they arrive to a bombed concert hall … yet they continue to perform,” she said.

Then in 2013 Shaheen’s uncle was killed in a street bombing. She got the news over the phone.

“My father called me to tell me…that he was killed going to buy the newspaper at the newspaper stand that he usually goes to,” she said.

Her family was devastated. Shaheen turned to music. A few years earlier, she had been approached by a group of students in El Paso who wanted to form an Arabic music ensemble. Two of them lived just across the Mexican border in Ciudad Juárez, which at the time, was engulfed in drug-related violence.

“That indiscriminate violence that people face in Damascus everyday is very similar to what people faced here in Juárez everyday,” Shaheen said.

Omar Limas, who plays percussion, was one of the students.

“We were pretty much in a war zone in Juárez,” he said. “We were hiding we couldn’t go out that much, but still we relied on music and art and doing what we had to.”

The ensemble they founded is called Layali Al-Sham, which means “Damascus Nights.” Limas first heard Arabic music online and was intrigued.

“With Arabic music we were discovering something new,” he said. “We were getting pretty much outside the traditional music we get here on the border.”

At a recent rehearsal the ensemble practiced different styles of Arabic music ranging from classical to pop. Its members are just as diverse. Reem Issa is a Palestinian refugee who’s now studying electrical engineering in El Paso. She sings in the chorus and said the ensemble gives her a sense of home.

“I have one or two hours of rehearsal to have fun, to sing something I know because its in Arabic,” Issa said. “And all of them are really happy to be there so when you’re with them you have positive energy.”

That positive energy electrified the audience after Layali Al-Sham’s latest university concert.

Orlando Murillo, a violinist from Juárez, said the concert made him feel connected to a world beyond his immediate surroundings.

“The music unifies the people,” Murillo said. “It’s a great place to … forget your problems just sing and dance enjoy and that’s it.”

That concert was dedicated to musicians in Syria with the hope that one day they will perform again in peace.

Source: www.fronterasdesk.org

I was born in Egypt, raised in Egypt, went to a school with a curriculum that was in both English and Arabic, and yet I consider English my first language in writing. When I publish an article in Arabic, it’s usually a translation, and I post it on Facebook with pride at having achieved the impossible. But … Continued

The Lebanese Information Center, along with other Lebanese-American organizations, will host the 10th Annual Commemoration of Lebanon’s Cedar Revolution on Thursday, April 30, from 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM, in the Rayburn House Office building at the US Congress. As has become custom, the LIC will commemorate the independence uprising that took place onMarch 14, … Continued

Huffington Post (Alexandra Svokos) reports that conservative firebrand David Horowitz spoke at the University of North Carolina, and said (among other things) that “the Muslim Students Association and Students for Justice in Palestine are associated with terrorist organizations” and “intend to ‘kill the Jews, to push them into the sea.’” Muslim students spoke out against … Continued