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
'The World According to Netanyahu' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's character will not allow him to surrender until he knows he no longer has a chance of prevailing in the face of police allegations of involvement in criminal activity. Israel
Palestinian press applauds coverage of Netanyahu investigations While Palestinian journalists have appreciated the Israeli media's reports on the police investigations into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the journalists are sharply critical when it comes to Israeli media coverage of the occupation of Palestinian territories. Palestine
Knesset advances 'dangerous' Jerusalem residency law An Israeli Knesset committee recently approved a draft law that would make it easier to revoke the residency status of Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, raising the concerns of human rights organizations. Palestine
Can a new 'rescue council' save Gaza? A new national council has formed in Gaza with the goal of offering services that the Palestinian consensus government appears unable or unwilling to provide. Palestine
US pressure on Hamas risks new era of enmity As Washington moves forward on sanctions to pressure Hamas to accept a US-brokered deal with Israel, the efforts could backfire and spark new violence. Palestine
Congress skeptical of Saudi nuclear energy demands Lawmakers are making it clear that any proposal to share civilian nuclear technology with Saudi Arabia must include robust nonproliferation safeguards. Saudi Arabia
US hits deadlock in Lebanon-Israel border mediation Renewed tension over the demarcation of the maritime border between Israel and Lebanon has the United States engaged in shuttle diplomacy between the countries. Israel
Al-Qaeda could stand to gain from changing Syrian situation Divergent goals of the major players in Syria, along with the apparent evolution of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham Islamist group, could all wind up strengthening al-Qaeda. Syria
Life sentences for Turkish journalists chill others awaiting verdicts A court jailed three prominent journalists last week to life imprisonment, stoking fears that others in prison for their work may also see harsh penalties. Turkey
Iranian authorities, Sufi leader move toward reconciliation The Iranian authorities and Gonabadi dervishes seem to be moving toward reconciliation following deadly clashes in Tehran. Iran
Why Iran doesn’t want escalation in Syria Contrary to the narrative that Iran wants to drag Israel into the Syrian war, Tehran appears to have no incentive to do so. Israel
Is Erdogan using imprisoned foreigners as bargaining chips? A reporter for Germany's Die Welt newspaper was recently released after a year in prison with no trial, but Turkey is likely to continue detaining foreigners for political bargaining. Turkey
