Opening statements to start in Miami terrorism trial of local Muslim clerics

Opening statements are set to begin Friday in the Miami federal trial of an elderly Muslim cleric and his son on charges they funneled tens of thousands of dollars from South Florida to the Pakistani Taliban terrorist organization to carry out violent attacks against U.S. interests overseas.

A jury of 12 people was selected Thursday after they filled out four-page questionnaires in the case of Hafiz Khan, 77, and his 26-year old son, Izhar Khan. The elder Khan was imam at a Miami mosque, and his son held the same post at a mosque in Margate.

Both have pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy and material support to terrorism, asserting they were sending financial support to relatives and friends in Pakistan who have struggled for survival -- not to terrorists. Each count carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years.

Charges were dismissed last year against another son, Irfan Khan, because of a lack of evidence.

The Pakistani Taliban is linked to al-Qaida and has played roles in several attacks against the U.S., including a December 2009 suicide bombing at a military base in Khost, Afghanistan, that killed seven U.S. citizens, prosecutors said. The group also was connected to the attempt in May 2010 by Faisal Shahzad to detonate a bomb in New York's Times Square.

Central to the prosecution's case against the Khans are more than 1,000 phone calls and other communications intercepted by the FBI from 2008 to 2010. Based in large part on those calls, prosecutors say the Khans wired at least $50,000 to help finance the Pakistani Taliban.

In addition, prosecutors say Hafiz Khan founded a religious school, known as a madrassa, in Pakistan's Swat Valley that was used by the Taliban to train and indoctrinate children in fighting Americans. The madrassa was shut down in 2009 by the Pakistani army.

Court documents also show that the calls contain anti-American rhetoric and strong support for the Taliban, mainly on the part of the older Khan.

In July 2009, for example, the FBI said Khan “cursed the leaders and army of Pakistan, and called for the death of Pakistan's president and for blood to be shed in violent revolution.”

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Jessica Simpson Talks Being a Mother and Style

Jessica Simpson gets real about the challenges of motherhood in a new interview with People, in particular, finding the balance between her career and the responsibilities of being a new mother.

"On some of the days of Fashion Star, I'm awake before [my daughter Maxwell] is awake, and I'm not home until she's already back to sleep," she admits. "That's only happened about four times, but it makes the day awful. I definitely need to see my baby."

Video: Jessica Simpson on Surpassing 50 Pound Weight Loss

"I get really sad if I don't get to see her," she adds. "And then when Maxwell sees me, she just stares at me and touches my face. I can tell she missed me. That breaks my heart."

Jessica is also honest about the new fears she's developed.

"There are little things that you kind of obsess over. I never knew how protective I was until I had my own child. I'm already thinking about intruders coming into the house and what our escape route would be."

Video: Jessica Simpson Shares Her Baby News

But perhaps most noticeably, the new role in her life has changed her signature style -- though she can still clearly have a little fun with it.

"I find myself going for more sophisticated looks, but I do think that's kind of trendy right now – just a classier looking woman," she muses. "I love to show off my curves, but being a mom, I guess I do it in a little bit more classy way, even though for Halloween I was a milkmaid –- but there are moments."

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Mayor Bloomberg fires back at UFT ad about evaluation negotiations

The United Federation of Teachers has released a TV ad blasting New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg for taking a "his way or the highway" approach to education.

Bloomberg in turn accused the union of walking away from negotiations over a new teacher evaluation system.

The UFT ad released Friday accuses Bloomberg of "going after teachers" instead of supporting them.

Bloomberg responded in his radio show on WOR. He said calling people "bad things" in ads makes it unlikely that the parties will reach an agreement.

The city and the union have been unable to agree on a new system for evaluating teachers. The city risks losing $250 million in state aid if there is no deal by Jan. 17.

Paul Martinka

Mayor Bloomberg

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American Airlines, US Air merger threatened by lack of accord, says pilots union

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DALLAS — An American Airlines merger with US Airways Group Inc. may not occur during the AMR Corp. unit’s bankruptcy unless pilot groups from the carriers agree on interim contract terms, American’s pilot union has warned.

If an accord isn’t reached “in the very near future, in all likelihood there will be no merger before American Airlines exits restructuring,” Keith Wilson, president of the Allied Pilots Association, said in a message on the union’s website.

The agreement would set wages, working conditions and terms to protect seniority until a joint contract for pilots at Fort Worth, Texas-based American and their counterparts at the US Airline Pilots Association is negotiated, he said.

The pilot groups, joined by executives from both carriers, began negotiating the accord earlier this month. American, which filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 29, 2011, has said it prefers to assess mergers after leaving court protection. US Airways, based in Tempe, Ariz., has been pushing for a tie-up since January.

“We don’t have the ability to stop the clock and make everyone else wait while we sort through all of the issues associated with an integrated seniority list,” Wilson told members, saying those details must wait until after a merger occurs.

Seniority is critical to pilots because it determines compensation, work schedule and the type of aircraft flown.

“American is actively taking part in ongoing discussions with US Airways, APA and USAPA to appropriately evaluate the impact of pilot labor costs and operational and seniority integration issues on a potential merger,” Mike Trevino, a spokesman for the carrier, said in an e-mail.

Trevino said American and the company’s unsecured creditors committee “invited the unions to join the discussions in order to properly evaluate the labor issues that would be involved. Our objective review of strategic alternatives aims to deliver the most value for our financial stakeholders and the best outcome for our people and customers.”

A combination of American, the third-biggest U.S. carrier, and No. 5 US Airways would surpass United Continental Holdings Inc. as the world’s largest airline, based on passenger traffic.

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New Year is a good time to count your blessings

The new year is a great time to look back and consider how blessed you are. I try to do that every day, but often in my life I am overwhelmed at the enormous blessings the Lord has bestowed on me.

No, I didn’t get a great big financial windfall last year. And I walk with a cane, because of painful arthritis in one of my knees. Still, I am blessed. I can still walk.

A few years ago, I was told by two doctors that I was going blind. But today, I can see without eyeglasses. So, every time I pass a patch of flowering weeds along the road, I say a silent "Thank you," to the Lord for allowing me to see His beautiful handiwork. I even get excited when I see my mango tree heavy with new blossoms, signifying a bumper crop (hopefully) of mangoes this season. And when I see a momma bird caring for her young, it brings a smile to my face.

Yes, I have a lot to be thankful for as I go into this new year. And so do you. This is even more evident in a letter I received a few months ago from local gospel recording artist Pat Jackson. She briefly told her touching story of survival and blessings and wanted to know if I wanted to interview her. I did, and still do. However, Jackson’s email doesn’t seem to work and the number she enclosed in her letter was missing one digit.

Jackson said she is a survivor of thyroid cancer. Her story is so touching for this and any time of the year, that I will share with you what she shared with me in her letter.

Jackson, 50, has been plagued with serious health issues nearly all her life, that included multiple cysts, benign tumors, diverticulitis, ruptured intestines, four major surgeries, during one of which she nearly bled to death, survived six car accidents and a stray bullet that came through her sister’s home.

She never knew her biological mother or father and spent her entire childhood as a foster child. "I was very fortunate and was able to live in the same [foster] home until I became an adult," she said.

"But," she added, "Today, I am cancer-free, even though doctors doubted that I would ever be able to speak or sing again. To God be the glory, for allowing me life and a second chance," she wrote. She has an album titled, Lord, I’m Still Standing.

What’s your "I am thankful for another year" story? Tell me in a few words and I may use them in a future column.

Email them to me at: bea.hines@gmail.com, or write to me at: Bea L. Hines, c/o The Miami Herald, 2000 NW 150th Ave., Suite 1105, Pembroke Pines, FL 33028.

‘Jews of Asia and Africa’

If you want to be in the class, "Jews of Asia and Africa," to be offered at the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU, Jan. 9-April 17, you have until Jan. 9, to register.

The class will be taught by FIU research professors Nathan Katz and Tudor Parfitt, and is open to both degree-seeking FIU students and community members interested in taking the class on a auditing basis.

Community members interested in auditing the class may enroll through the Center for the Advancement of Jewish Education at 305-576-4030, ext. 128, or carlaspector@cajemiami.org. The cost is $295. Students seeking credit may enroll in course REL 4312 through FIU.

The 12-week course will look at the Jewish experience beyond Florida, which has been the traditional focus of the museum. The class will also feature guest speakers to include a visiting member of Zimbabwe’s Lemba Jewish community, and will employ different methodologies, from genetic anthropology to participant/observation findings.

For more information, contact Katz at nathan.katz@fiu.edu.

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The Most and Least Influential Social Media Celebs

While he isn’t currently available for promotional work, businesses would have the most success on social media with President Barack Obama endorsing their goods and services, new research shows.

A study by social marketing platform SocialToaster revealed that Obama is considered the most influential celebrity on social media. Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Ashton Kutcher and Anderson Cooper followed the president on the rankings of social influencers.

On the flip side, the research found that former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney was the least influential celebrity on social media, finishing just below Madonna, Kanye West and Sean Hannity.

While celebrities might be influential on social media in some aspects, it’s those closest to us who make the largest impact when it comes to the important issues. Nearly all of the social media users surveyed agreed that a social media post from a close friend or family member was most likely to influence them on important subjects, with politicians and athletes the least likely to influence them.

“While it was no surprise that in this election year Barack Obama would be ranked the most influential person in social media, it was surprising to us that Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga would beat Madonna and Kanye West,” said Brian Razzaque, CEO of SocialToaster. “We were also surprised to see that friends had more pull than family when it came to influencing the sharing of social media content.”

Regardless of whom it comes from, there are some posts that will quickly result in an unfollowing, the study discovered. Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed said a racist post would cause them to immediately unfollow someone on social media. Other types of posts that result in a loss of followers include sexism, pornography, repetitive, overly personal posts and those that use poor grammar.

The researcher was based on surveys of 3,000 SocialToaster Super Fans, which consist of social media experts and professionals, many of whom work with some of the nation’s leading brands. The experts range from those who work in the entertainment industry who represent numerous television shows and movies to those who work in professional sports, including the Baltimore Ravens and the Detroit Pistons.

This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow Chad Brooks on Twitter @cbrooks76 or BusinessNewsDaily @BNDarticles. We’re also on Facebook & Google+.

Copyright 2012 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Kathy Griffin Reacts Anderson Cooper Crotch Kiss

"If you think this is the part where I'm going to apologize for trying to go down on Anderson Cooper, you are sorely mistaken," Kathy Griffin told David Letterman when asked about her sexual simulation on the journalist during CNN's New Year's Eve coverage in Times Square.

"I tried ladies and gays for you," the comedian declared on Wednesday's Late Show.

When Letterman, 65, asked how Griffin, 52, would feel if the tables were turned and a man tried that on her, she quipped, "If it was Anderson Cooper... I'd unzip so fast. Boom. Pants down."

Check out Griffin's outrageous public display of affection towards Cooper, 45, on New Year's Eve, below:

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Brave Sandy Hook students return to classroom for first time since Newtown school massacre

AFP/Getty Images

A Sandy Hook Elementary student flashes a peace sign as children leave on a school bus in Newtown.

Give peace a chance.

A bus-riding Sandy Hook Elementary School tyke didn’t need to utter a word to say what’s on the mind of everyone between Newtown and Monroe.

Traumatized Sandy Hook kids came back in class today, for the first time since last month’s massacre that took the lives of 20 little kids and six educators.

About 400 kids from Newtown took over classrooms in nearby Monroe, at the site of what was once Chalk Hill Middle School, as their original school remains closed off as a crime scene.

The campus, seven miles away, has been decorated in “Sandy Hook Elementary School” signage, as students reunited with their teachers today -- many for the first time since that horrific Dec. 14 morning.

Newtown schools superintendent Janet Robinson teachers and staff are doing their best to make this a “normal day” for the children.

AFP/Getty Images

A sign welcoming children from Sandy Hook Elementary school sits on the road in Monroe, Conn.

"We will go to our regular schedule," she said. "We will be doing a normal day."

There was a huge police presence on campus today, with cops checking IDs of parents as they approached school grounds to drop off kids.

"I think right now it has to be the safest school in America," Monroe police Lt. Keith White said yesterday.

School officials encouraged parents to visit campus and even stay in classrooms or an auditorium throughout the day.

Sandy Hook dad Vinny Alvarez took a moment to tell his little girl’s third-grade teacher, Courtney Martin, how eternally grateful he’ll be for the instructor’s quick thinking.

Martin didn’t hesitate locking her classroom door when bullets began to fly on Dec. 14, keeping her kids safe from rampaging gunman Adam Lanza.

"Everybody there thanked her in their own way," Alvarez said.

With Post Wire Services

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Portion of Macy’s Flagler Street property in downtown Miami sold

A New York firm bought part of the Macy’s building in downtown Miami and is expected to acquire the rest. The next priority is negotiating a new lease to keep Macy’s as a tenant.

In a deal that could have implications for the future of downtown Miami’s anchor retail tenant, a New York real estate investment firm paid $15.55 million to acquire more than half the property that now houses Macy’s Flagler Street store.

The acquisition by Aetna Realty Group includes the 48,000 square feet of land that was leased to R.W. Burdine in 1917. Until the recent sale, the property was owned by 23 heirs of Richard and Harriet Ashby, who signed the initial 99-year lease with Burdine. The lease expires in 2016.

The Ashby family began taking steps to prepare the property at the intersection of Miami Avenue and Flagler Street for sale nearly four years ago, said Lewis R. Cohen, a GrayRobinson lawyer who represented the Ashby family in the transaction that closed on New Year’s Eve.

Over the years, Macy’s and its predecessor, Burdines, grew the site’s downtown presence well beyond the Ashby land, and the current building now extends another 30,000 square feet of land. Aetna has also made a commitment to purchase the remaining portion of the building, that is currently owned by Macy’s, Cohen said. But that deal hasn’t closed yet.

“That deal is a sure thing,” Cohen said. “They could not have closed with us without having an agreement with Macy’s completely nailed down.”

When Macy’s decided not to purchase the Ashby land itself, the owners soughta third-party that could control both pieces. The reason: Improvements made to the store over the years straddled both properties, such as elevators and escalators starting on one parcel and ending on another.

“Between the engineering difficulties of severing the properties and the legal issues involved, it would have been somewhere between extremely expensive and impossible” for different entities to share control, Cohen said.

Aetna was one of three bidders interested in the site, Cohen said. One of the other players was the Barlington Group, a Miami developer that in 2011 signed a deal with Macy’s to sub-lease 20,000 square feet of empty ground-floor space for a mix of restaurants and cafes.

Macy’s spokesman Jim Sluzewski said this transaction doesn’t impact Macy’s current lease. He declined to comment on any other pending transaction regarding the property the retailer owns in downtown Miami.

“It’s business as usual,” said Sluzewski, who also would not discuss Macy’s long-term plans for downtown Miami beyond the expiration of its lease. The company’s roots in downtown Miami date to 1898, when the first Burdines opened in a nearby downtown location.

Aetna and its local attorneys did not respond to calls Wednesday for comments.

But Cohen said Macy’s is in the process of finalizing a short-term deal with the new owners.

“They intend to stay for at least the foreseeable future,” Cohen said. “For a minimum of five years they’ll be there and possibly longer.”

Downtown scene

Macy’s long-term future on Flagler Street has been in doubt since 2007, when Macy’s Florida then-Chairwoman Julie Greiner took city leaders to task for the deplorable conditions in downtown and threatened that the retailer might leave.

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Man grazed by stray bullet in Miami on New Year’s Eve

A stray bullet fired into the air just after midnight on New Year’s Eve struck a man as he celebrated at a party in Miami, according to police.

The bullet grazed the man’s upper left shoulder. Paramedics treated him outside the Allapattah home at Northwest 25th Avenue and 32nd Street. The man, who was not identified, wasn’t taken to a hospital.

Miami police spokesman Detective Willie Moreno confirmed that the victim was struck by a stray bullet.

Homeowner Randy Ruiz said the injured man was a friend of a friend who was visiting his home on New Year’s Eve.

“We had a lot of friends and family in my yard, and fireworks were being fired off,” Ruiz said. “Just after midnight, one of the guests complained of blood on his shirt. So we quickly ran over to see what was going on and saw there was blood on his left arm.”

Neighbor Barbara Jimeno, who has three grandchildren between the ages of one and four, said she was alarmed by what happened.

“It could happen to me or my grandchildren, who live around the block,” she said.

The injury followed a series of warnings from the Miami mayor, Miami police and activists about the dangers of firing bullets into the air on New Years Eve.

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