Gaza Strip

Meet the "Irvine 11" Appellate Case, Same as the "Irvine 11" Superior Court Case

The 77-page appellate brief filed this week by the defense seeking to overturn the misdemeanor convictions of 10 of the so-called "Irvine 11" boils down to the same question that was before Orange County Superior Court in 2011: Did the free speech rights of Muslim students who loudly and systematica ... More >>

Stevie Wonder Cancels Scheduled Los Angeles Performance for Israeli Army Benefit

The battlegrounds of Palestinian civil society's call for a cultural boycott of Israel usually play out in Tel Aviv or in the music venues of other cities, but this week a prominent cancellation was gained much closer to home. The legendary Stevie Wonder was all set to perform for an annual Friends ... More >>

Five Suggested Job Requirements for the New Orange County Register Restaurant Critic

Have you read the job posting for the Orange County Register's new restaurant critic?I'm actually surprised; they're calling for a critic who will delve into Little Saigon and Little Arabia (note to the editors over there: it hasn't been called Little Gaza in years), who is at home in high-end resta ... More >>

Interview with Abdallah Omeish, Director of NBFF-Winning The War Around Us

The War Around Us recently nabbed the best feature documentary award at the Newport Beach Film Festival. It profiles the 2008-2009 Gaza invasion through the eyes of two young Al-Jazeera English correspondents, Ayman Mohyeldin and Sherine Tadros. Through their eyes, viewers get a glimpse into the Isr ... More >>

Apartment in Athens, Nazi Drama from Italy, is Big Winner of Newport Beach Film Fest Awards

Wait, there's more: And the Other Newport Beach Film Festival Awards Go To . . .Apartment in Athens was the big winner of jury awards at the 2012 Newport Beach Film Festival, which officials say was attended by about 52,000 patrons between April 27-May 3, about the same as last year. Weekly picks H2 ... More >>

Newport Beach Film Festival's Social Network

A curated sample of socially relevant offerings at the 2012 festival

Taher Herzallah, "Irvine 11" Defendant, is Unrepentant at UC Santa Barbara

​"My people are being killed, my people are being oppressed, I'm going to do everything I can do to stop this. I'm not going to follow a form of protest that fits the status quo that allows my people to be oppressed." --Taher Herzallah, one of the so-called "Irvine 11," speaking at UC Santa Bar ... More >>

Little Arabia Grows Up

Can one of the country's largest Middle Eastern neighborhoods patch up its rivalries to become OC's next famous ethnic enclave?

Ten Great Middle Eastern Restaurants in Orange County

Kareem's​Over the weekend, I attended an art reception where the featured snacks were hummus and falafels. I still remember the days where the two (with tabbouli, natch) were staples of any left-of-center gathering, placed by conscious hosts who were attuned to the needs of vegetarians and wanted ... More >>

[UPDATED with Responses:] Irvine 11 Verdict: Guilty

Christopher Victorio/OC WeeklySee updates at the end of this post. ORIGINAL POST, SEPT 23, 12:04 P.M.: Cries and wails erupted in the Santa Ana courtroom as the verdict was read. All 10 defendants in the Irvine 11 case have been found guilty of ​disturbing a public meeting and engaging ... More >>

Who's Gagging Whom In the Irvine 11 Case?

The First Amendment, academic freedom and Islamophobia collide in an OC courtroom

Irvine 11 Trial: Defense Compares Protest to Comedy Club Heckling--'Rude, Not Illegal'

Christopher Victorio/OC Weekly​"Of course it was planned," said defense attorney Jacqueline Goodman in her opening arguments today, addressing the charge that the so-called Irvine 11 (now 10) conspired to disrupt a public speech.     "They conspired to obey the law, which is the opp ... More >>

This Week in Food: Wolverine, Dumb Health Inspectors, and Smokers!

Flickr user flavouz​You know what Friday is: summation time! Highlights after the jump!

UCI Muslim Student Union Event's Name was Less Threatening, But Critics Charge It Was Still Extreme

​Perhaps it was the UC Irvine-imposed suspension or the negative publicity over the disruption of Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren's February 2010 speech on campus or just plain old growing up, but the embattled Muslim Student Union just presented a kinder- and gentler-sounding program ... More >>

'Lasers' Beams In at No. 1

​ It's now official! Grammy Award-winning rapper Lupe Fiasco can now claim a No. 1 album on his musical résumé, with first week sales of Lasers coming in at more than 204,000 copies. The Nielsen SoundScan numbers confirmed the expected, as the new release edged out and ended Adele's two-week rei ... More >>

Stranger Than Fiction: Nonfiction Writers Who Would Create Awesome Comics

​Comic books have a nasty habit of forever being associated with superheroes. Even among people who should know better: regular comic book readers. But tying the medium of comics and graphic novels to just stories about Spider-Man and Batman is a bit like saying the novel simply exists to sho ... More >>

War! What's It Good For? Five Comics for People Who Don't Like War Comics

Dynamite/Gary Leach; Vertigo/Dave Johnson​War comics can be an acquired taste, mostly because the traditional model plays around with some formula of tortured soldier, brutal combat, victimized civilians, heavy pathos. Rinse. Repeat. If these elements don't appeal to you, odds are high the comic-- ... More >>

Little Arabia Grows Up

[Hole In the Wall] Andaluz Restaurant and Bakery spins a sublime shawarma

#74. Whole Lamb With Kabsa at Olive Tree

From now until our Best Of issue, we are counting down our 100 favorite dishes of the past year. If you've missed some, we've included a linked list at the end.Dave Lieberman​#74. Whole Lamb with Kabsa at Olive TreeCrisp on the outside, wonderfully moist on the inside, and enough for a feast: th ... More >>

Feasting Upon Lamb at Olive Tree Restaurant

Dave Lieberman​My phone rang a couple of months ago. It was Joshua Lurie of Food GPS, calling to let me know he was preparing a full-scale foodie assault on Anaheim's Little Gaza, and asking whether I wanted to join him.While I accompanied Lurie to several of Little Gaza's gems, including more man ... More >>

[UPDATED:] New Details [and Videos] Emerge About Double Murder Suspect Dan Wozniak

UPDATE: A Sims-style video based on the police account of the two murders Daniel Wozniak has been accused of carrying out has been posted on YouTube. More details throughout . . . The video was created for NMA World Edition, the YouTube page for Taiwan-based Next Media Animation, "the largest full- ... More >>

The Restaurant Re-Tread: Papa Hassan's, Orange

Five and a half years ago, Gustavo predicted the end of Papa Hassan's Cafe, nestled in between the buildings of the ever-expanding Chapman University, on Glassell north of the Orange Circle.That prediction, fortunately, did not come to pass. Papa Hassan's lives on under its green awning on the Chapm ... More >>

Obama, Economy, War, Swine Flu, Iran Election Crack Alamanac's Top 10 News Topics of 2009

Here are The World Almanac and Book of Facts Top Ten News Topics of 2009:​1. Obama Presidency Begins. With the U.S. at war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and facing its worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, Barack Obama swearing in as the nation's 44th president Jan. 20 in Washington, DC.her ... More >>

Looking for a Hot Christmas Date? Feed the Homeless

More gruel, please.​Got nothing to do Christmas Day. Head out to the Special Christmas Feed the Homeless Event 2 p.m. Friday at the Walk of Honor in Santa Ana's Civic Center complex. Bring along healthy food to help serve the homeless who live, gather and share meals with their families at the Civ ... More >>

Green Party Meeting

Irvine Ranch Water District

McKinney Follows UC Irvine Speech With Israeli Detention [UPDATED, THE SEQUEL]

UPDATE: MCKINNEY IS ON HER WAY HOME, REPORTS ATLANTA-JOURNAL CONSTITUTION ...Former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney (D-Georgia) is shown speaking at UC Irvine May 13 as part of the Muslim Student Union's controversial, three-week "Israel: The Politics of Genocide" teach-in. Here she makes the c ... More >>

UCI Muslim Student Union Event Draws Ire of Local Jews

As this promotional video shows, UC Irvine's Muslim Student Union is at it again, presenting 18 days of events this month under the banner "Israel: the Politics of Genocide." Among those coming to the campus through May 21 are: George Galloway, the British member of Parliament who speaks against th ... More >>

George Galloway

Embassy Suites Anaheim South

Gaza's Dead Are Mourned at Interfaith Service

Participants in "Tears for Gaza -- an Interfaith Memorial Service" -- which begins at 7 p.m. Wednesday at St. Anselm of Canterbury Episcopal Church, 13091 Galway St., Garden Grove -- are asked to "dress in black as a sign of mourning over the reckless loss of human lives." A reception and fe ... More >>

All Gaza, All the Time for One Muslim Student Union Watcher

***UPDATED*** As former Weekly reporter Derek Olson mentions in this piece, recent UC Irvine graduate Reut R. Cohen keeps tabs on the campus' controversial Muslim Student Union on her blog. But, understandably, it's been all Gaza, all the time in recent days. Cohen (left) provides v ... More >>

Little Gaza Protest: the More Things Don't Change

Here is a photo from the protest at the "Little Gaza" area of Brookhurst Street over Israel's violent actions against Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip.But here's the twist: photographer S. Twair did not snap the shot during Sunday's demonstration, which drew about 200 people over four hours pro ... More >>

Forbes DOESN'T Mention O.C. as an Up-And-Coming Food Capital

I can't say I'm surprised. Besides, list like these are subjective, as all lists are. But this one, is especially so. A panel of four, consisting of "Food & Wine Restaurant Editor Kate Krader; Anya Fernald, executive director of Slow Food Nation; and Erik Wolf, president of the International Culi ... More >>

This Hole-in-the-Wall Life

Not Just Falafels

Grub Guide

Tasty morsels from the county's best damn dining guide

Baby Killer Redux

Orange County's diaspora of ethnicities is finally coming together against a common foe: whitey. On Saturday, Anaheim's Little Gaza played host to a protest against the ongoing Israeli destruction of Lebanon, as well as US support for Israel's efforts. Some went so far as call the Israelis baby-kill ... More >>

Grub Guide

Tasty morsels from the county's best damn dining guide

Terrorists Attack US Power Plant

Israeli terrorists have caused significant damage to a power plant in Palestine, insured by the U.S. government for up to $48 million dollars. READ THE STORY ON ALJAZEERA.COM Tony Snow, White House Chief of Verbal Diarrhea, previously described Israel's current assault on the Palestinians as legi ... More >>

Grub Guide

This week in paintings and photos

This Hole-in-the-Wall Life

Sambousek Me!

Grub Guide

This Week in Great Service

This Week in Grubberies That Carry Us

Kosher Bite

Weve Got the Hook-ahps

Smoking through the hookah lounges of Anaheims Little Gaza

This Week in Randomness

Grub Guide

The OC Weekly Book Of Food Lists!

Shawerma Shop

The simple greatness of Sahara Falafel

Diary of a Mad County

Gaza Strip Mall

Meating the paste in northwest Anaheim