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
Europe wants Egypt to drop death penalty The European Parliament passed a resolution condemning the Egyptian government's use of the death penalty, but authorities seem unlikely to comply. Egypt
Students in northern Syria depend on Turkey to complete degrees The Turkish Basaksehir Academy in al-Bab is gaining popularity in northern Syria because of its internationally recognized degrees, but the high tuition fees exclude students from low-income backgrounds. Syria
Jordanian artists combine music, satire to voice their woes A group of young Jordanian satirists poke fun at government decisions with songs that appeal to the youth. Jordan
Israel almost ready for another Golda Meir Almost 50 years after her era, Golda Meir remains the only woman to have served as prime minister of Israel, but the clock is ticking. Israel
Saudis recruit legal muscle for leverage in US nuclear negotiations Saudi Arabia has hired an international law firm to help negotiate a more favorable civil nuclear agreement with Washington amid pushback in Congress. Saudi Arabia
Pro-Kurdish opposition prepares for snap poll in Turkey Despite the wave of arrests and disillusioned voters, the new leader of the Peoples’ Democratic Party says it will still win enough votes to enter parliament if elections are moved forward. Turkey
World financial watchdog keeps punting on Iran Iran had hoped to be removed from an international financial watch list but will have to settle for a continuation of an ambiguous status quo. United States
Ahmadinejad asks Khamenei for free and immediate elections Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written a letter to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calling for free and immediate elections. Iran
Turkey's march on Manbij stalled by wall of reality The United States and Russia don't appear to be on the same page as Turkey in Syria, despite Ankara's expectations, which hang in the balance. Syria
Turkey mulls 'national' bitcoin A government-promoted push for the "native and national" in almost every realm has reached the sphere of cryptocurrency despite Turkey's lingering mistrust of bitcoin. Turkey
Will Iraq's Sunnis get own political-religious authority? Some Sunni groups are seeking to establish a unified religious leadership, setting Sunnis up to play a stronger role in the upcoming elections. Saudi Arabia
Israel plagued with political corruption Unless Israeli society acts severely and decisively against political corruption, this corruption monster will take over every aspect of life. Israel
