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
Nazareth Women's Magazine Editor Is Shaping Public Opinion In an interview with Shlomi Eldar, Yara Mashour, editor of the Arabic-language magazine Lilac, describes herself as a liberated woman who is not afraid of shattering conventions, both in Arab and Israeli society. Israel
Israel: From Startup Nation To Startup Peace To become an international success story and to reimagine itself as a place where entrepreneurship thrives, Israel must leave occupation behind, writes Nadav Eyal. Palestine
Iraqiya List Frays As Constituents Splinter As Iraq continues to struggle with widespread anti-government protests, the prominent Sunni Iraqiya list has gone through a series of defections that have dealt a serious blow to its influence, writes Ali Abel Sadah. Iraq
Israeli Backpackers Celebrate Passover in Thailand Young Israelis, just out of the army, routinely leave Israel for the Far East to “clear the head,” writes Ben Caspit, but gather for a massive Passover ceremony across Thailand, Nepal or India. Israel
Hezbollah Says External Pressures Forced the Mikati Resignation Sources close to Hezbollah consider the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Mikati to be the result of pressure from outisde powers, writes Nasser Chararah. Lebanon
KRG Prime Minister Promotes Kurdish Oil on European Visit Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minster Nechirvan Barzani has used a trip to Europe to drum up interest in Kurdish oil, as the region announces plans to expand its export capabilities, writes Abdel Hamid Zebari. Iraq
Land of Milk and HoneyFor Few Israelis Successive Israeli governments have allowed international and Israeli companies to profit unfairly from natural resources that should benefit all Israelis, writes Idan Grinbaum. Israel
Recycling Gaza’s Waste Recycling, a process completely unknown previously in Gaza, is set to become widespread, thanks to a new recycling plant and plans to build more, writes Hazem Balousha. Palestine
Palestinians in Jerusalem Skeptical of Arab Support Jerusalemites have heard Arab promises of support before, but have yet to see any of them fulfilled, Daoud Kuttab writes. Palestine
Palestinian Christians Face Greater Restrictions This Easter Israel has issued fewer permits to Palestinian Christians wishing to visit Jerusalem on the holiest event on the Christian calendar, Lena Odgaard writes. Palestine
Settlers in Hebron Celebrate 'Freedom' While Palestinians Suffer As the Jewish people of the world celebrate Passover and their freedom, repression still stings in the streets of Hebron, where the conflict and discrimination epitomize the story of all Israeli settlement activity, writes Akiva Eldar. Palestine
Turkey's Top Religious Official Backtracks on Critique of Izmir Some speak out after Mehmet Gormez, Director of Religious Affairs, says Izmir has a different kind of religiosity that needs the wisdom of religious traditions, Tulin Daloglu writes. Turkey
