Osama Siblani, a publisher and activist with a history of praising terror groups, now has a Dearborn street named after him in Dearborn, Michigan.
One man tried to address it, but the Islamist mayor called him an Islamophobe, a term generally aimed at intimidation, and told the man Ted Barham, a Christian, he isn’t welcome in the city. All the man did was point out Siblani’s terrorist sympathies.
It sounds like the paper he founded shouldn’t exist.
The full story is after the clip.
In Defense of a Terrorist Sympathizer
Siblani, Champion of Hezbollah and Hamas
Osama Siblani, founder of the Arab American News, has a long record of inflammatory remarks about Israel and support for militant groups. At a 2022 rally, he told supporters, “We are the Arabs who are going to lift Palestinians all the way to victory … Believe me, everyone should fight within his means. They will fight with stones, others will fight with guns, others will fight with planes, drones, and rockets.”
His rhetoric has drawn condemnation from Jewish organizations and national watchdog groups. Sacha Roytman, CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, said, “Wayne County’s naming of a street in honor of Osama Siblani is a disturbing move that only stokes the flames of hate… The growing normalization of such toxic rhetoric undermines the security of Jewish Americans, who are already facing unprecedented levels of antisemitic hostility.”
A Resident Tries to Exercise His Free Speech
At a Dearborn City Council meeting last week, Mayor Abdullah H. Hammoud told local resident Edward “Ted” Barham that he was “not welcome” in the city because Barham raised concerns about new street signs honoring the Arab American News publisher Osama Siblani.
Barham introduced himself as “Ted Barham, Dearborn resident,” and objected to two intersections being renamed after Siblani.
Siblani, Blood of Martyrs
He said, “He’s a promoter of Hezbollah and Hamas” before quoting past remarks from Siblani, including, “He talks about how the blood of the martyrs irrigates the land of Palestine … whether we are in Michigan and whether we are in Yemen. Believe me, everyone should fight within his means. They will fight with stones, others will fight with guns, others fight with planes, drones, and rockets.”
Barham compared the signs to naming a road “Hezbollah Street or Hamas Street,” calling them “provocative” and stressing that as a Christian, he wanted to encourage peace. He closed by quoting Jesus: “Blessed are the peacemakers.”
No Christians (or Jews?) Have a Voice in Dearborn
Council members interjected, warning Barham against “personal attacks” and reminding him that the city had no control over the county’s decision.
Mr. Barham was not attacking anyone he was stating facts.
Mayor Hammoud responded with remarks that shocked many in attendance. “The best suggestion I have for you is to not drive on Warren Avenue or to close your eyes while you’re doing it. His name is up there and I spoke at a ceremony celebrating it because he’s done a lot for this community,” Hammoud said.
Get Out
He went further, accusing Barham of being “a bigot, and you are racist, and you’re an Islamophobe,” before declaring: “Although you live here, I want you to know as mayor, you are not welcome here. And the day you move out of the city will be the day that I launch a parade celebrating the fact that you moved out of this city.”
Christians don’t count, terrorist sympathizers do in Dearborn.
It hasn’t been called Dearbornistan for decades for nothing. Burrowed in like ticks.
This mayor is the face of evil within in islam. Muslims seek control by any means.