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
Abadi, Erdogan meet to form Kurdistan game plan Iraq's prime minister met with Turkey's president in Ankara today to solidify joint support for Baghdad as it battles to keep the Kurdistan region under Iraqi control. Iraq
Amid crisis with Erbil, Baghdad launches Kurdish TV programming Baghdad launches a Kurdish TV segment in an attempt to have direct contact with Kurdistan Region residents. Iraq
Trump undermines Iranian debate on economic role of IRGC Rather than isolating the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Trump administration’s targeting of the organization in effect stymies ongoing attempts to curtail its role within the Iranian economy. Iran
Kurdish crisis could benefit Iran-Turkey-Russia energy deal As markets react to Iraq's reclamation of Kirkuk oil fields, other countries stand ready to take advantage of opportunities being created for energy producers. Iraq
Iranian leader refuses any negotiation over ballistic missiles Iran’s supreme leader reacted to US officials’ recent talk about limits on Tehran’s ballistic missile program, saying the Islamic Republic’s missile power is non-negotiable. Iran
Talented Palestinian youths find opportunity in national student orchestra A project co-sponsored by the Ministry of Education and An-Najah National University will enable musically talented youths to find a platform to develop their talent. Palestine
Why Israel's ultra-Orthodox mainstream worries about its image Leaders of the mainstream ultra-Orthodox community object to anti-draft demonstrations championed by an extreme ultra-Orthodox minority. Israel
Are Netanyahu, Liberman pushing Israel to war? Instead of Israel’s traditional discrete approach on retaliating fire from the north, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman are multiplying their provocative declarations. Israel
Sudan's crop opportunities could be Egypt's boon or bust Sudan wants to expand agricultural production, which could benefit it as well as Egypt, but Cairo worries that such a development might threaten its supply of the Nile's water. Egypt
Lebanon looks to recreate Palestinian society in refugee camp A decade after the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp was destroyed, UNRWA is rebuilding it based on original layouts to better achieve the sense of community that existed in pre-1948 Palestine. Palestine
PLO steps up organizing efforts in Palestinian diaspora The Palestinian reconciliation paved the way for the Palestinians in the diaspora to unite as PLO officials and ambassadors are actively working to revive the diaspora. Palestine
Prominent writer unleashes controversy around sexuality in Turkey In a recent Ted Talks presentation, Turkish writer Elif Shafak admitted being bisexual, spurring a backlash on social media. Turkey
