The pro-Palestinian ‘uncommitted’ movement is at a standstill with top Democrats as the DNC begins

The United Center undergoes preparation ahead of the Democratic National Convention on August 17, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Updated 18 August 2024
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The pro-Palestinian ‘uncommitted’ movement is at a standstill with top Democrats as the DNC begins

  • Talks between pro-Palestinian activists and the Harris campaign have yielded progress in some areas, but their core policy demands remain unmet
  • While some Arab American fear another Trump administration would be a disaster, they also worry that Kamala Harris has no plan to stop Israel's genocidal war

DEARBORN, Michigan: Of the thousands of delegates expected to gather Monday at the Democratic National Convention, just 36 will belong to the “uncommitted” movement sparked by dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
But that small core has outsized influence.
Anger over US backing for Israel’s offensive in Gaza could generate unwelcome images for convention organizers, with raucous protests expected outside and potentially inside the Chicago arena where Harris will accept the nomination Thursday.
Top Democrats have spent weeks meeting with “uncommitted” voters and their allies — including a previously unreported sit-down between Vice President Kamala Harris and the mayor of Dearborn, Michigan — in an effort to respond to criticism in key swing states like Michigan, which has a significant Arab American population.

Weeks of meetings and calls between pro-Palestinian activists and the Harris campaign have yielded progress in some areas, but their core policy demands remain unmet. The activists want Harris to endorse an arms embargo to Israel and a permanent ceasefire. Harris has supported Biden’s negotiations for a ceasefire but rejected an arms embargo.
Rima Mohammad, one of Michigan’s two “uncommitted” delegates, said she sees the convention as a chance to share their movement’s concerns with the party leadership.
“It is a way for protesters outside to be able to share their frustration with the party,” she said.
The Democratic nominee meets a key Arab American mayor
Questions remain about the leverage “uncommitted” voters hold now that Biden has stepped aside and Harris has taken his place. Democrats have seen a significant surge in enthusiasm for Harris’ campaign and concerns about voter apathy in key areas, such as Detroit’s large Black population, appear to have diminished.
But Harris and her team have still made communication with Arab American leaders a priority.
During a campaign trip to Michigan last week, Harris met with Abdullah Hammoud, the 34-year-old mayor of Dearborn, a Detroit suburb that has the largest number of Arab Americans of any city in the United States. The meeting was disclosed by a person who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.




This picture taken on March 3, 2024 shows Dearborn Mayor Abdullah H. Hammoud speaking during an interfaith prayer vigil for Aaron Bushnell, a former US airman who set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington on February 26, 2024 in protest over the war in Gaza. (AFP)

The person familiar with the meeting did not provide specific details but said the focus was on Harris’ potential policy, if elected, on the Israel-Hamas conflict. Hammoud declined to comment.
“Vice President Harris supports the deals currently on the table for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and for the release of hostages,” her campaign said in a statement. “She will continue to meet with leaders from Palestinian, Muslim, Israeli and Jewish communities, as she has throughout her vice presidency.”
According to a source familiar with convention planning, two panel discussions will take place during the convention in Chicago: one addressing Arab and Palestinian issues with leaders from the “Uncommitted” movement, and another focused on Jewish American issues, including the rise in antisemitism and hate speech.
Campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez on Thursday held separate one-on-one meetings with leaders in the Arab American community and “uncommitted” movement in metro Detroit.
“They are listening and we are talking,” said Osama Siblani, publisher of The Arab American News, who met with Chavez Rodriguez. “But none of us can garner votes in the community without public statements from Harris. She doesn’t need us; she can win over votes by saying and doing the right thing.”
According to Siblani, Chavez Rodriguez agreed that “the killing has to stop.” In response, Siblani said he pressed: “How? There is no plan.”
Lavora Barnes, the Democratic chair in Michigan, said the party would “continue working toward our goal of coming together to defeat Donald Trump and Republicans up and down the ballot.”
“We are committed to continuing these conversations with community leaders, activists and organizations because we want to ensure that everyone in the Michigan Democratic Party has a seat at the table,” Barnes said in a statement.
No agreement on an arms embargo
Some on the Democratic Party’s left have called for including a moratorium on the use of US-made weapons by Israel in the platform of policy goals that will be approved during next week’s convention. But such language isn’t included in a draft platform party officials released earlier this summer, and it’s unlikely that those close to Harris’ campaign would endorse including it.
The Uncommitted National Movement has also requested a speaking slot at the convention for a doctor who has worked on the frontlines in Gaza, along with a leader of the movement. And they have asked for a meeting with Harris “to discuss updating the Gaza policy in hopes of stopping the flow of unconditional weapons and bombs” to Israel, said Abbas Alawieh, another “uncommitted” delegate from Michigan and one of the founders of the movement.




Abbas Alawieh, spokesperson for Listen to Michigan, speaks during a press conference in Dearborn, Michigan, on Feb. 28, 2024. Behind him are Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud and Layla Elabed, campaign manager for Listen to Michigan. (AFP)

Before a Harris rally just outside Detroit last week, Alawieh and Layla Elabed, co-founders of the movement, briefly met with the vice president. They requested a formal meeting with Harris and urged her to support an embargo on weapons shipments to Israel. According to them, Harris seemed open to the idea of meeting.
However, shortly after news of the meeting became public, Harris’ national security adviser Phil Gordon reaffirmed that she does not support an arms embargo. Alawieh mentioned Wednesday that the group has not received any further response from Harris’ team or the DNC regarding their requests ahead of the convention.
Since then, leaders of the “Uncommitted” movement have met with senior staff from the DNC and the Harris campaign to discuss their requests.
“I hope she doesn’t miss the opportunity to unite the party,” said Alawieh.
The Trump campaign continues its outreach
Elsewhere in metro Detroit this week, Massad Boulos, the father-in-law of Trump’s youngest daughter and now a leader in his Arab American outreach, was holding meetings with various community groups. Boulos has come to Michigan often for the outreach, along with Arab Americans for Trump chair Bishara Bahbah.




Bishara Bahbah, national chairman for Arab Americans for Trump, answers questions during an interview on Aug. 14, 2024, in Dearborn, Michigan. (AP Photo)

According to Bahbah, their pitch highlights the situation in Gaza under Biden’s administration and a promise from Trump’s team to give the community a seat at the table if he wins.
“We have been told by the Trump circle, which is not part of the campaign, that in return for our votes, there would be a seat at the table and a voice to be heard,” said Bahbah.
But any apparent political opportunity for Trump in the Arab American community or the “uncommitted” movement may be limited by his past remarks and policies.
Many Arabs remain offended by Trump’s ban, while in office, on immigration from several majority Muslim countries as well as remarks they consider insulting. Trump also has criticized Biden for not being a strong enough supporter of Israel.
Speaking to an audience of Jewish supporters Thursday, Trump painted the protesters expected in Chicago as antisemitic and invoked an Arabic term that is sometimes used by Muslims to mean war or struggle.
“There will be no jihad coming to America under Trump,” he said.
But Bahbah acknowledges that his and Boulos’ strategy isn’t necessarily aimed at converting voters to support Trump — but to stop them from voting for Harris.
“If I can’t convince people to vote for Trump, having them sit at home is better,” said Bahbah.
 


Trump signals fresh trade tensions with China

Updated 30 May 2025
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Trump signals fresh trade tensions with China

  • The world’s two biggest economies had agreed this month to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs
  • Trump wrote that: “China… HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US“

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump signaled renewed trade tensions with China on Friday, arguing that Beijing had “violated” a deal to de-escalate tariffs, at a time when both sides appeared deadlocked in negotiations.

Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform came hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with China were “a bit stalled,” in an interview with broadcaster Fox News.

The world’s two biggest economies had agreed this month to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other, in a pause to last 90 days, after talks between top officials in Geneva.

But on Friday, Trump wrote that: “China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US,” without providing further details.

Asked about the post on CNBC, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer took aim at Beijing for continuing to “slow down and choke off things like critical minerals.”

He added that the United States’ trade deficit with China “continues to be enormous,” and that Washington was not seeing major shifts in Beijing’s behavior.

On Thursday, Bessent suggested that Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping could get involved in the situation.


Global universities seek to lure US-bound students amid Trump crackdown

Updated 30 May 2025
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Global universities seek to lure US-bound students amid Trump crackdown

  • Osaka University is offering tuition fee waivers, research grants and help with travel arrangements for students and researchers at US institutions
  • Students from Britain and the European Union are also now more hesitant to apply to US universities

TOKYO/BEIJING/LONDON: Universities around the world are seeking to offer refuge for students impacted by US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on academic institutions, targeting top talent and a slice of the billions of dollars in academic revenue in the United States.

Osaka University, one of the top ranked in Japan, is offering tuition fee waivers, research grants and help with travel arrangements for students and researchers at US institutions who want to transfer.

Japan’s Kyoto University and Tokyo University are also considering similar schemes, while Hong Kong has instructed its universities to attract top talent from the United States. China’s Xi’an Jiaotong University has appealed for students at Harvard, singled out in Trump’s crackdown, promising “streamlined” admissions and “comprehensive” support.

Trump’s administration has enacted massive funding cuts for academic research, curbed visas for foreign students — especially those from China — and plans to hike taxes on elite schools.

Trump alleges top US universities are cradles of anti-American movements. In a dramatic escalation, his administration last week revoked Harvard’s ability to enrol foreign students, a move later blocked by a federal judge.

Masaru Ishii, dean of the graduate school of medicine at Osaka University, described the impact on US universities as “a loss for all of humanity.”

Japan aims to ramp up its number of foreign students to 400,000 over the next decade, from around 337,000 currently.

Jessica Turner, CEO of Quacquarelli Symonds, a London-based analytics firm that ranks universities globally, said other leading universities around the world were trying to attract students unsure of going to the United States.

Germany, France and Ireland are emerging as particularly attractive alternatives in Europe, she said, while in the Asia-Pacific, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, and mainland China are rising in profile.

SWITCHING SCHOOLS
Chinese students have been particularly targeted in Trump’s crackdown, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday pledging to “aggressively” crack down on their visas.

More than 275,000 Chinese students are enrolled in hundreds of US colleges, providing a major source of revenue for the schools and a crucial pipeline of talent for US technology companies.

International students — 54 percent of them from India and China — contributed more than $50 billion to the US economy in 2023, according to the US Department of Commerce.

Trump’s crackdown comes at a critical period in the international student application process, as many young people prepare to travel to the US in August to find accommodation and settle in before term starts.

Dai, 25, a Chinese student based in Chengdu, had planned to head to the US to complete her master’s but is now seriously considering taking up an offer in Britain instead.

“The various policies (by the US government) were a slap in my face,” she said, requesting to be identified only by her surname for privacy reasons. “I’m thinking about my mental health and it’s possible that I indeed change schools.”

Students from Britain and the European Union are also now more hesitant to apply to US universities, said Tom Moon, deputy head of consultancy at Oxbridge Applications, which helps students in their university applications.

He said many international students currently enrolled at US universities were now contacting the consultancy to discuss transfer options to Canada, the UK and Europe.

According to a survey the consultancy ran earlier this week, 54 percent of its clients said they were now “less likely” to enrol at an American university than they were at the start of the year.

There has been an uptick in applications to British universities from prospective students in the US, said Universities UK, an organization that promotes British institutions. It cautioned, however, that it was too early to say whether that translates into more students enrolling.

REPUTATIONAL EFFECTS
Ella Ricketts, an 18-year-old first year student at Harvard from Canada, said she receives a generous aid package paid for by the school’s donors and is concerned that she won’t be able to afford other options if forced to transfer.

“Around the time I was applying to schools, the only university across the Atlantic I considered was Oxford... However, I realized that I would not be able to afford the international tuition and there was no sufficient scholarship or financial aid available,” she said.

If Harvard’s ability to enrol foreign students is revoked, she would most likely apply to the University of Toronto, she said.

Analytics firm QS said overall visits to its ‘Study in America’ online guide have declined by 17.6 percent in the last year — with interest from India alone down over 50 percent.

“Measurable impacts on enrolment typically emerge within six to 18 months. Reputational effects, however, often linger far longer, particularly where visa uncertainty and shifting work rights play into perceptions of risk versus return,” said QS’ Turner.

That reputational risk, and the ensuing brain drain, could be even more damaging for US institutions than the immediate economic hit from students leaving.

“If America turns these brilliant and talented students away, they will find other places to work and study,” said Caleb Thompson, a 20-year-old US student at Harvard, who lives with eight international scholars.


‘Deeply dangerous’ Islamophobia being promoted in UK: Baroness Warsi

Updated 30 May 2025
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‘Deeply dangerous’ Islamophobia being promoted in UK: Baroness Warsi

  • House of Lords member, ex-minister ‘heartbroken’ over negative portrayals of British Muslims
  • She discussed with her husband whether to prepare ‘exit routes’ from country

LONDON: Baroness Warsi, a Muslim former minister in the UK, has warned that “deeply dangerous” Islamophobic narratives are being promoted in British public discourse, The Independent reported.

The House of Lords member, who was speaking at the Hay Festival — a prominent literary and arts event — compared rising Islamophobia in Britain to the treatment of Jews in 1930s Europe.

In conversation with British-Israeli journalist Rachel Shabi, she described feeling “heartbroken” at the way Muslim communities are increasingly portrayed in the UK.

“It doesn’t matter how many times you serve and how many times you do what you do for our country,” she said. “You still don’t belong. You still don’t matter. You still can’t be trusted.”

Warsi, who was discussing her new book “Muslims Don’t Matter,” described growing up in a working-class family of Pakistani origin in Yorkshire.

The former co-chair of the Conservative Party said she had recently discussed with her husband whether it was necessary to prepare “exit routes” from Britain.

“I turned to him and I said are we going to be like those Jewish families in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s, who were always sitting back, looking at the writing on the wall and thinking, ‘No, we’re going to be all right. We’re very successful. We live in the right part of town. We’re part of the establishment.’ And then it will be too late. Should we be doing what everybody else around us seems to be doing right now, which is putting in place plan Bs and exit routes?”

Warsi warned that negative narratives surrounding British Muslims are being driven by politicians and the media.

“The good news is this isn’t bottom up,” she said. “This isn’t ordinary people sat there thinking, ‘Oh, I really have an issue with Muslims and I’m now going to have quite hateful views about them.’

“This is people in power and people with big platforms constantly telling us, ‘We can’t trust Muslims. They’re all dangerous, they’re violent, the men are sexually predatory, the women are traditionally submissive.’”

She added: “It’s these tropes which we’re constantly being told about Muslim communities which, in the end, poisons the public discourse to a point where we start seeing this community in the worst possible light.”

Warsi ended the discussion with an appeal for solidarity, and called on the British public to reject divisive narratives.

“It’s time for us to organize and it’s time for us to fight back, because all of our rights in the end will suffer,” she said.


Ukraine says it’s ready to restart talks with Russia but needs clarity on Kremlin’s terms

Updated 30 May 2025
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Ukraine says it’s ready to restart talks with Russia but needs clarity on Kremlin’s terms

  • “Ukraine is ready to attend the next meeting, but we want to engage in a constructive discussion,” Andrii Yermak said
  • Ukraine and its European allies have repeatedly accused the Kremlin of dragging its feet in peace efforts

KYIV: Ukraine is ready to resume direct peace talks with Russia in Istanbul on Monday, a top adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky said, following days of uncertainty over whether Kyiv would attend a meeting proposed by Moscow.

But Ukrainian officials have insisted that the Kremlin provide a promised memorandum setting out its position on ending the more than three-year war, before the two delegations sit down to negotiate.

“Ukraine is ready to attend the next meeting, but we want to engage in a constructive discussion,” Andrii Yermak said in a statement on the website of Ukraine’s Presidential Office late Thursday.

“This means it is important to receive Russia’s draft. There is enough time – four days are sufficient for preparing and sending the documents,” Yermak said.

Ukraine and its European allies have repeatedly accused the Kremlin of dragging its feet in peace efforts, while it tries to press its bigger army’s battlefield initiative and capture more Ukrainian land.

Kyiv’s Western partners, including the US, are urging Moscow to agree to an unconditional ceasefire, something Kyiv has embraced while the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking.

Ukraine’s top diplomat, Andrii Sybiha, also told reporters on Friday that Kyiv is waiting for Russia to clarify its proposals ahead of a next round of talks.

“We want to end this war this year. We are interested in establishing a ceasefire, whether it is for 30 days, 50 days, or 100 days. Ukraine is open to discussing this directly with Russia,” Sybiha said at a joint news conference in Kyiv with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan.

Sybiha and Fidan also held the door open to a future meeting between Presidents Zelensky and Vladimir Putin of Russia, possibly also including US President Donald Trump. Fidan said the ongoing peace push in Istanbul could be “crowned with” such a meeting.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday told reporters that a Russian delegation will head to Istanbul and stand ready to take part in the second round of talks on June 2.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday publicly invited Ukraine to hold direct negotiations with Moscow on that date. In a video statement, Lavrov said Russia would use Monday’s meeting to deliver an outline of Moscow’s position on “reliably overcoming” what it calls the root causes of the war. Russian officials have said for weeks that such a document is forthcoming.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov on Wednesday said that Ukraine isn’t opposed to further direct talks with Russia, but that they would be “empty” if Moscow were to fail to clarify its terms. Umerov said he had personally handed a document setting out Ukraine’s position to the Russian side.

Low-level delegations from Russia and Ukraine held their first direct peace talks in three years in Istanbul on May 16. The talks, which lasted two hours, brought no significant breakthrough, although both sides agreed to the largest prisoner exchange of the war. It was carried out last weekend and freed 1,000 captives on each side.

Fidan on Friday voiced a belief that the successful swap has “proved that negotiations can yield concrete results.”

“There are two paths in front of us. Either we will turn a blind eye to the continuation of the war, or we will reach a lasting peace within the end of the year,” he told reporters in Kyiv.


Philippines looks to deepen trade, business ties with UAE

Updated 30 May 2025
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Philippines looks to deepen trade, business ties with UAE

  • Manila is anticipating the signing of a Philippine-UAE trade deal in June
  • UAE is one of Philippines’ key trading partners in the Gulf region 

MANILA: The Philippines is ready to deepen its economic partnership with the UAE, Manila’s special envoy has said, as the visit of a business delegation from Dubai concluded this week. 

Dubai Chambers organized a business forum in Manila on Wednesday as part of its “New Horizons” initiative. With its delegation visiting the Philippine capital, the business body had organized at least 180 bilateral meetings. 

The event also saw Dubai Chambers and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry sign a preliminary agreement aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties through various efforts, including sending trade missions and organizing business-matching missions. 

“The Philippines is open, ready, and eager for stronger trade and business ties with the UAE,” Kathryna Yu-Pimentel, the Philippines’ special envoy to the UAE for trade and investment, said during the forum. 

“Last year, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the UAE — a golden milestone. Today, we look ahead with even more optimism.” 

The UAE is a key trading partner of the Philippines in the region. In 2023, non-oil bilateral trade between the Philippines and the UAE reached over $1 billion. The Gulf state also ranked as the Philippines’ top export market among the Gulf Cooperation Council nations, and its 17th largest trading partner globally. 

It is also home to the second-largest Filipino diaspora after Saudi Arabia, with some 700,000 overseas Filipino workers living and working in the UAE. Many are employed in the construction, healthcare and hospitality sectors.

“This upward trend will only continue, especially with the anticipated signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the Philippines and the UAE next month,” Yu-Pimentel said. 

“This will be historic in the sense that it will be our first free trade agreement with a Middle Eastern country.” 

The expected development will follow President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s first trip to Abu Dhabi in November, during which he met UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.

The two leaders committed “to deepening cooperation in various areas, including economy, trade and sustainability” during their meeting, which included discussions on the bilateral trade agreement. 

Negotiations on the free trade deal have been underway between Philippine and UAE officials since the beginning of 2024.