Islam in America > Iranian tech CEO from LA supplying Iran with info; Muslim HS Principal reassigned in Texas

 

California: Iranian Muslim tech CEO charged with supplying ‘sophisticated’ equipment to Iranian nuclear programs

Jun 3, 2026 5:00 pm By Robert Spencer17 Comments

While Trump hails his chimerical peace and his new friendship with Mojtaba Khamenei, some Iranians continue to pursue their jihad against the United States, even within America itself, despite the fact that they were welcomed here and given every consideration. The Qur’an nowhere says that if the infidels are nice to you, then don’t wage jihad against them.

Jamshid Ghomi, Department of Justice

California tech CEO arrested for allegedly supplying equipment to Iranian nuclear programs: DOJ

Fox News, June 3, 2026:

A California tech company CEO was arrested for allegedly supplying U.S. equipment to Iran’s nuclear and military establishment.

Jamshid Ghomi, 63, a dual Iranian and U.S. citizen residing in Newport Coast, Calif., is charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

Ghomi allegedly procured “sophisticated U.S.-origin networking, security, and encryption equipment for Iranian customers — including the Iranian regime’s nuclear and military establishment,” according to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) press release.

“As alleged, Ghomi enriched himself by supplying U.S. technology to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and other sanctioned entities responsible for Iran’s nuclear program,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said, per the statement….

Ghomi moved over $15 million from Iran into his U.S. bank accounts and a seperate escrow account, falsely reporting the money to the IRS as a foreign inheritance, according to the DOJ…

Texas: Muslim high school principal appointee reassigned; has defended Sharia and supported jihad against Israel

Jun 2, 2026 5:00 pm By Robert Spencer12 Comments

Since Shayma Alzubi has been reassigned, there has been a great hue and cry regarding “Islamophobia” and, inevitably, “racism,” but what if Shayma Alzubi had been a National Socialist, defending Hitler’s Germany and praising the Holocaust? Many would have seen more clearly that she should have been reassigned, but, of course, in that case she would have been a guest on Tucker Carlson’s show and become a celebrity among Jew-haters of all kinds. And that could happen in this case as well.

Shayma Alzubi, Fort Worth ISD

Fort Worth ISD reassigns new principal after backlash over social media posts

by Joe Kelley, KRLD, May 27, 2026:

Fort Worth Independent School District has reassigned newly hired Western Hills High School principal Shayma Alzubi just days after announcing her appointment, following intense conservative backlash over her past social media activity….

The district announced Alzubi as the new principal on May 22, 2026. On Tuesday, May 26, Fort Worth ISD removed the announcement from its social channels and confirmed she would be reassigned pending an internal investigation. District officials stated that some of her previous social media posts “may not align with the district’s social media policy and expectations for staff.”

Alzubi, who has worked in Fort Worth ISD since 2013 as a science teacher and later as an assistant principal at multiple campuses, drew criticism after screenshots of older posts surfaced online. The posts reportedly included support for Black Lives Matter, Palestinians, Dreamers, and explanations of Sharia law. Conservative activists and accounts amplified the content, urging the district to reconsider the hire.

Western Hills High School serves students in southwest Fort Worth. The rapid reversal comes as the district prepares for the new school year. No timeline has been given for the investigation’s completion or Alzubi’s new assignment. The district has declined further comment while the review is ongoing.

The episode highlights growing scrutiny of educators’ public statements and the challenges school districts face balancing hiring decisions with community expectations in a politically polarized environment. Fort Worth ISD serves approximately 70,000 students across the city.

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Fort Worth principal pick faces backlash, investigation over social media posts defending Sharia law

by Rachel del Guidice, Fox News, May 27, 2026:

A newly appointed Texas high school principal is facing backlash and a district investigation after her alleged past social media posts defending Sharia law and supporting progressive causes resurfaced online.

Shayma Alzubi, currently identified as an assistant principal for ninth grade at Southwest High School in Fort Worth, was selected by Fort Worth ISD as the next principal of Western Hills High School and announced the news in a recent Facebook post that now appears to have been deleted.

Alzubi’s appointment faced criticism online after screenshots from her past social media posts surfaced.

A Jan. 23 post shared by Alzubi appeared to defend Sharia law by comparing it to other religious ethics and standards like “biblical principles.”

An August 2021 repost from FWISD 4 ALL demanded people vote for mask mandates at a 2021 Fort Worth ISD school board meeting, as well as a photo of Alzubi and another person with “BLACK LIVES MATTER” banner text.

Another photo featured banner text that read, “I am #WithDreamers I SUPPORT DACA,” which refers to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, as well as an image of Alzubi accompanied by text that states, “Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine.”

In a Tuesday post on X, State Board of Education member Julie Pickren called for an investigation into Alzubi, writing, “I am calling on @teainfo to do an investigation into Shayma Alzubi for violations of Texas Code of Ethics for Administrators. Furthermore, I am asking for an investigation into Dept. Commissioner of School Governance Steve Lechelop who oversees the Fort Worth ISD Board of Managers.”

In a Tuesday update on X replying to her initial post, Pickren shared a statement she said came from the Fort Worth ISD suggesting that Alzubi could be reassigned pending an investigation….

 

Bits and Bites from Around the World > Another Child Attacked by Cougar in Malibu

 

Child attacked by mountain lion that wandered into California neighbourhood

By Rachel Goodman  Global News

Posted August 11, 2025 12:56 pm

 2 min read

View image in full screen

A mountain lion approaching the camera while walking through blooming bushes. The scene is in Torres del Paine National Park, in Chile’s Patagonia region. Carlos A Carreno / Getty Images

An 11-year-old girl is recovering in hospital after being attacked by a mountain lion in California over the weekend.

According to NBC Los Angeles, the child was bitten on Sunday at about 5:40 p.m. outside a home in the Pacific Coast Highway and Encinal Canyon Road area of Malibu.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies told the outlet that the girl was bitten on the arm and transported to a hospital in Thousand Oaks with non-life-threatening injuries.

Wildlife experts later put down the mountain lion they believed was responsible for the attack, it added.

The Mountain Lion Foundation estimates that about 4,500 mountain lions inhabit vast ranges of landscape across California, and about 40 per cent of the state is considered suitable habitat for the species, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife says.

View image in full screen

A mountain lion sitting relaxed in Torres Del Paine, Patagonia, Chile. Getty Images

Mountain lions are a solitary and elusive species that tend to avoid human contact and are also referred to as cougars, panthers and pumas.

The department receives hundreds of mountain lion sighting reports every year, but few result in the animals posing an imminent threat to public safety, it told NBC Los Angeles.

Mountain lion attacks on humans are also rare. Since 1890, there have been six known fatal human attacks by mountain lions in California.

Its website says the state’s most recent fatal mountain lion attack was in March 2024, when a 21-year-old man was killed in a remote part of El Dorado County. Since 1986, there have been 23 non-fatal attacks.

Mountain lions eat mostly large animals, such as deer, elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, wild pigs, feral horses and burros, the wildlife department says, and will adapt their hunting behaviour in response to a changing environment, prey availability and competition for food.

They may also hunt other animals, including poultry, small livestock or pets.

Last Thursday evening, a biker in the Alpine Capone area along Brohm Ridge, near Garibaldi Provincial Park in British Columbia, suffered minor injuries after being followed by a mountain lion.

Officials said the animal pursued the man and “made contact,” then followed him for another 20 minutes.

The man walked backward holding his bike, and eventually was able to get the big cat to disengage by throwing rocks at it.

Last year, a five-year-old boy survived a mountain lion attack in Malibu Creek State Park after he was targeted by the predator during a family picnic.

According to the Los Angeles news station KTLA, he was playing with several other children close to the family’s picnic site, where at least six adults were supervising, when a mountain lion picked up the child by his head and began to run away.

Witnesses said the child’s father chased the fleeing mountain lion and fought it until it dropped the boy from its mouth. The boy was airlifted to hospital, where he was treated for injuries, including to his eyes.

Climate Change > California's Great Drought is over, for now - Thanks Hilary (Not Clinton)

California is now practically drought-free, but we keep wasting

so much rainwater

A driver whose car stalled out on flooded Avenue 48 asks for help from a passerby during Tropical Storm Hilary.

 

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

BY GRACE TOOHEYSTAFF WRITER 

AUG. 29, 2023 3 AM PTShow more sharing options

Almost all of California is finally drought-free, after Tropical Storm Hilary’s rare summer drenching added to this winter’s record-setting rainfall totals.

But despite all that drought-busting precipitation, California continues to capture only a percentage of that water. Much of the abundance in rain from Hilary ended up running off into the ocean — not captured or stored for future use, when California will inevitably face its next drought.

“We’re not even coming close to capturing all the runoff,” said Mark Gold, the director of Water Scarcity Solutions for the Natural Resources Defense Council. He still called Hilary’s rainfall “an unexpected boon” for Southern California’s local water supplies, but said too much of the storm’s water washed away — the latest reminder of the state’s urgent challenge to better capture rainwater to help refill vital groundwater resources.

“The potential is really there for us to do even better,” Gold said. “We can definitely do a lot more than what we’re doing.”

CALIFORNIA

L.A. promised to stop wasting so much stormwater. But progress has been painfully slow

Feb. 21, 2023

Following the torrent of winter storms from a parade of atmospheric rivers, much of California pulled out of drought conditions after three of the state’s driest years on record. And Hilary continued to build on that trend — pulling one of the state’s driest regions out of such dire conditions.

“Most of that lingering drought ... has been essentially removed from the Mojave Desert,” said David Simeral, a climatologist at the Desert Research Institute, who mapped the latest U.S. Drought Monitor update. While much of the state moved out of drought conditions after strong winter and spring atmospheric river storms, Simeral said the Mojave didn’t benefit as much from those rainmakers.

But after Hilary dumped 2 to 6 inches across the Mojave, “it was enough to be able to remove the remaining areas of drought,” he said. The Mojave had been in drought conditions since August 2020.

Only California’s most northwestern and southeastern corners remain under moderate drought or in abnormally dry conditions — just 6% of the state, according to the drought monitor.

State and local officials have been actively working to improve methods to capture stormwater, but it’s simply not been fast enough to keep up with growing water demands in a more extreme climate — while balancing flood control. Los Angeles County recently shared its latest water plan, which includes lofty goals to greatly increase yearly groundwater recharge.

But when fast, strong storms like Hilary currently hit, the local infrastructure isn’t able to capture a majority of the deluge.

“What that means is that there’s larger amounts of rainwater rolling down the hill, rolling down to the street ... our systems are getting flooded and overwhelmed pretty quickly,” said Art Castro, a watershed manager for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. He said that happened during Tropical Storm Hilary at the Tujunga Spreading Grounds — one of the county’s larger spreading grounds, which employ earthen bowls to capture runoff and encourage the rain to percolate into the earth, recharging important aquifers.

When the basins are full, the water will just “bypass the system,” Castro said, running off into the Pacific.

Still, the city was able to capture more than 10,000 acre-feet of water from Hilary’s rainfall, as of preliminary numbers last week, with more expected as water continues to be diverted from regional dams, Castro said. That’s about 3.2 billion gallons, enough to provide a year’s worth of water to 40,000 households, he said.

However that 10,000 acre-feet only makes up about 7% of the water the city has captured since October, Castro said.

“In a perfect world, we should have captured a lot more than 10,000 acre-feet because of Hilary,” Castro said. “But because of the limitations of our infrastructure ... we weren’t able to maximize that potential.”

CLIMATE & ENVIRONMENT

Tracking California’s water supplies

July 8, 2022

And maximizing that water is increasingly important for L.A., as drained aquifers cannot just bounce back after one good water year.

“What we need to do is either capture a lot of the wet season, or develop more stormwater recapture projects that can take advantage of an average year,” Castro said. That will likely require “back-engineering” of L.A.’s water system, he said, as much of it was designed with older rain models in mind, when storms weren’t as intense.

County-operated spreading grounds, of which there more than two dozen, captured approximately 8,600 acre-feet of stormwater during Hilary’s storms, about 2.8 billion gallons, according to L.A. County Public Works spokesperson Steven Frasher. But in this above-average rainfall year, that amounts to less than 2% of the county’s stormwater captured since October.

On a statewide level, Hilary also didn’t have a major effect on water supplies.

Statewide

Statewide reservoir storage capacity is 130% of average for this month.

Historical average

78% full

78% full

Data as of Aug. 28

California Department of Water Resources

Sean Greene

LOS ANGELES TIMES

“This was a very fast moving storm and, really, it was largely a Southern California event,” said Jeanine Jones, the interstate resources manager for the California Department of Water Resources. “It caused a lot of flash flooding in places that aren’t designed to handle a lot of water, like Death Valley and some of the desert areas, but from a water supply perspective, it’s not really very significant.”

Most of the state’s reservoirs, and its largest, are located in northern California, which meant they were largely unaffected by the southern tropical storm, Jones said. And, perhaps more importantly, most of those reservoirs already sit at some of the highest levels in years, many measuring well above 100% of historical averages, state data show.

“We got a lot of water all at once in a really short time, but it wasn’t the kind of storm that does much for water supply,” Jones said.

The ground can only absorb so much moisture so fast from such quick, intense storms, like Hilary, Jones said.

“The groundwater takes time to recharge,” Jones said. “Most of that water is going to run out to the ocean or run into a desert playa.”

But in the short term, officials are hopeful the rainfall from the unusual tropical storm will help with one thing: wildfires.

“It should help some in terms of adding some soil moisture and helping the plants to not be so dried out,” Simeral said, which creates less fuel for flames.

Forecasters typically expect September to begin the peak of Southern California’s fire season, but the recently added moisture could help delay that, said Rose Schoenfeld, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

“Hopefully this extra precipitation will push that back even further,” she said.