'Hands off the Middle East': Metro Detroit Arab Americans rally amid fears of all-out war

DEARBORN, Mich. (FOX 2) - Metro Detroit's Arab American community held a rally on Monday with a clear, united message: Hands off the Middle East. 

"We gather today to stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Palestine, Yemen, Syria and Iraq," a speaker said. 

The rally was held in Dearborn, at the Henry Ford Centennial Library, amid growing fears of an all-out war in the Middle East. 

The killings last week of two militant leaders in Beirut and Tehran — attributed to Israel — brought vows of revenge from Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. 

"It started in Gaza, but now it’s happening in Lebanon," an attendee of the rally, Marwan Faraj, said. "South Lebanon is completely demolished. People are being killed every single day. Innocent people are dying from the bombing of Israel."

The Israel-Hamas War and broader escalation of tensions in the Middle East are at the forefront for Arab-American voters in this election cycle.

"Tomorrow, August 6, we need to make sure that our friends, the people who are good for our community and our country, the United Stated of America, win – not those who are the best politicians that money can buy," said Osama Siblani, the publisher of the Arab American News. 

Members of the Dearborn Community Council, which sponsored Monday's rally, say former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris must work to listen to Arab-American voices if they want to win the White House in November. 

The calls come after a widening split with President Joe Biden over his handling of the war.

"Kamala Harris is part of this administration as well. If she really wants the Arab-American votes, she has to stop the killing today," Faraj said. "Originally, we’ve always voted Democrats, and we’ve always supported the Democrats, and President Biden has been nothing but support for the genocide that has been taking place in Gaza. And he sent a group of his administration here to meet with people from our community, and they promised that they are going to force a ceasefire and until this minute, nothing happened. The next president, if they don’t show that they are going to do something about this, they’re not getting our votes – at least my vote." 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.