The Takeaway: Would Hamas complicate US plans for reset with Palestinians? Also: the back story on the spat between Israel and Jordan; Gulf post-COVID economic trends; Turkey’s Kurds; Egypt and Somalia; and more! Originals
Egypt sentences activist Sanaa Seif to 18 months in prison Seif, who had been in pretrial detention since June, was convicted Wednesday of spreading false news and misusing social media. Egypt
Ukraine rejects Iran's final report on downed passenger plane The Iranian government said last year's shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was the result of a human error. Iran
Palestinians receive first batch of vaccines through COVAX More than 60,000 doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines arrived in Ramallah on Wednesday. Palestine
Can shared disdain for US improve Russia-Iran ties? Although Iran and Russia are both fountains of anti-Western rhetoric and sentiments, it is for different reasons and will not necessarily bring the two countries closer together. Russia
Iranian conservatives unveil candidates ahead of 2017 presidential vote Despite striving to forge a consensus, Iranian conservatives appear to introduce their own separate candidates ahead of the country’s May 2017 presidential election. Iran
Turkey gripped by terror as Russian ambassador killed in Ankara Turkish media outlets are scrambling to cover the killing of Russia's ambassador to Turkey, a break from their calls to attack the Kurdistan Workers Party's bases in response to the suicide attack that killed 13 Turkish conscripts on leave in the central Anatolian town of Kayseri. Iraq
Is Turkey recruiting militants evacuated from Aleppo? After the Aleppo rout, Turkey considers boosting the ranks of its Free Syrian Army ally fighting in Operation Euphrates Shield, while fortifying the buffer zone and raising the bar in bargaining with Damascus. Syria
What's behind Erdogan's call for 'national mobilization'? Is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s surprising call for national mobilization a tool to eliminate objections to his executive presidency? Turkey
How Turkey used math to drastically boost its economy A 20% upward revision in the size of the Turkish economy will notably improve the country’s economic profile on paper, but not without controversy over the new calculation method and the discrepancies it created. Turkey
One year on, Libya's unity accord needs more work The Libyan Political Accord signed last year in Morocco between Libya’s rival political factions has proven imperfect, but to maintain what progress has been made, any renegotiations must be partial. Libya
Fatah seventh conference: What was missing from Abbas’ speech? In his speech at Fatah’s seventh congress, President Mahmoud Abbas did not tackle the failure of the consensus government and the disruption of the Palestinian Legislative Council. Palestine
Social media campaign challenges Palestinians to donate A social media campaign that is spreading fast among Facebook's Palestinian users encourages participants to donate money to people in need. Palestine
Why Israeli settlers consider Trump’s ambassador choice a 'miracle' For Israeli settlers, US President-elect Donald Trump’s choice of David Friedman as the next US ambassador to Israel is nothing short of a miracle. Palestine
Will Egypt accept Iran’s offer to supply oil? Iran has found an opportunity to meet Egypt’s local market needs for petroleum products, but will Egypt seize this opportunity at the expense of its ties with the Gulf countries? Legacy: Gulf
Baghdad looks to Trump with framework agreement Following the victory by US President-elect Donald Trump, Iraq seeks to strengthen cooperation with the United States through the full implementation of the 2008 Strategic Framework Agreement. Iraq
