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Slain Palestinian remembered for his generosity
Abu Obeida Omran was internationally known for his work to create an independent Palestinian state, but the immigrant was equally interested in helping his neighbors in his adopted hometown of Houston. "He always told me he wanted to find a way to give back to the community," said Massoud Nayeri, a long-time friend who had joined Omran in a campaign to provide school supplies for local children. Police said Omran, whom they identified as Abo Obyb Abdel-Salaam but was widely known as Abu Obeida, died late Friday when he was run over during an attempted robbery at a convenience store he recently opened in southwest Houston. He was 42. Curtis Odette Robinson was attempting to shoplift from the store when Omran confronted him and escorted him out, said HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva. The men — joined by alleged getaway driver Albert Lee Hall - began to fight, she said. At some point, Robinson got in the car and hit Omran, Silva added, running over him with both the front and rear tires. Robinson has been charged with murder. Hall is charged with assault. A proud citizen Omran owned several businesses and had opened the Chevron station where he was fatally attacked just two months ago. Friends said the new store was named Farouk Chevron, in recognition of former gubernatorial candidate Farouk Shami, and featured an appearance at the grand opening in June by Miss USA, Rima Fakih, the first Arab-American to win the title. Raised $150,000 for Gaza He formed the Houston chapter of Al-Awda, a national group that supports the creation of an independent Palestinian state, and helped organize a convoy to Gaza in 2009, delivering supplies to Palestinian families. He raised about $150,000 for that effort, Salhoot said. Gave to other causes, too Omran donated money to preserve African-American memorabilia, one of the society's projects, King said. "Sometimes business people are so focused on their own bottom lines that they don't leave a lot of room for social justice," King said. "That was not him."Salhoot said Omran never spoke of fear about working at the stores he owned. "I always advised him to watch out, to be careful," said Salhoot, who formerly owned a string of check-cashing stores. "I told him not to carry money in and out of the stores, to hire an armored carrier. Eventually, he probably would have, but when you are a small owner-operator, you do everything." He said he hoped local political leaders would acknowledge Omran's stature as a community leader by attending the prayer services, set for 9 a.m. today at Masjid Hamza, a mosque at 6233 Tres Lagunas Drive, near Highway 6 and the Westpark Tollway. Burial will follow. |
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