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
Young Palestinian engineers hope to race to victory in recycled car Twelve young Palestinian engineers built a racing car from scratch and will compete in the Formula Student Competition in the United Kingdom this summer. Palestine
Palestinian artist turns olive leaves into silver jewels Nadia Abu Ghattas turned her handicraft hobby into a profession that reflects her love of olive trees. Palestine
Iran's absence at Davos sparks speculation Following reports that he had canceled his trip, Iran’s Foreign Ministry claims Mohammad Javad Zarif never planned to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos this year. Iran
Iran's conservatives step up scrutiny on university students Principlists consolidate state control over Islamic Azad University in the aftermath of the recent protests in Iran. Iran
Turkey, Russia wage proxy war against Washington in Syria Syrian Kurds say Russia gave Turkey the green light for the Afrin operation after the Kurds refused to cede Afrin to the Syrian regime; can Turkey turn the situation to its long-term advantage? Syria
Tunisia protests highlight worrying decline in press freedoms Freedom of the press is at risk in Tunisia's post-revolution atmosphere, as violence against journalists rises amid a government crackdown. Tunisia
Netanyahu wants diplomacy, without diplomatic missions Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes statements about reinforcing Israel’s diplomatic outreach, but at the same time, he plans to close diplomatic missions abroad. Israel
Upholding car import customs does not benefit Egypt's local industry With stagnation plaguing Egypt's domestic car market, Cairo has decided to postpone reducing customs on importing European cars until the completion of a strategy to support the local car industry. Egypt
What's Hamas up to in Lebanon? Saleh al-Arouri, deputy chief of Hamas' political bureau, is busy reinforcing the movement's presence in Lebanon and mending ties with Hezbollah. Palestine
Palestinians dread austerity measures by UNRWA As the organization scrambles to replace withheld US funding, some Palestinians fear the aid cuts could be the beginning of the end for UNRWA. Palestine
Meet Iraq's plentiful parliamentary alliances Iraqi Shiite parties have formed four main coalitions for the upcoming parliamentary elections, but they are expected to join forces after the vote to take advantage of their collective clout. Iraq
Netanyahu indictment looms, but high stakes drag out decision More than the fate of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rides on the decision of Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit: public trust in the legal system, not to mention his own career. Israel
