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
Why did tribes take up arms in Egypt's Sinai? Sheikh Issa al-Kharafin, the sheikh of the Rumailat tribe and the head of the North Sinai Sheikhdom, speaks to Al-Monitor about the pros and cons of the tribal decision to take up arms to help the army fight extremists. Egypt
PA-Jordan coordination takes shape in wake of Al-Aqsa crisis One of the outcomes of a major meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Jordan’s King Abdullah was an agreement to form a crisis committee to coordinate the positions of both countries regarding incidents at Jerusalem's holy sites. Palestine
Trump’s Mideast envoys moving to next phase With President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu entangled in domestic scandals, a dramatic launching of a peace process might serve them well in terms of media coverage. Palestine
Haley to press IAEA on Iran deal compliance The US ambassador to the United Nations and rising Republican star has been sharply critical of Tehran. United States
Outsiders target Israeli Likud Party’s agenda The organizers of the "New Likud" estimate that some 12,000 people have joined the Likud Party because of them, with the goal of creating a bloc powerful enough to influence the party's direction from the inside. Israel
Proposal to extend Sisi's term sparks controversy in Egypt Signatures are being collected to lift constitutional restrictions on Egypt's presidential term limits and give Sisi more time to "implement the projects he started." Egypt
Iran opposition leader ends hunger strike Iranian opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi ends his hunger strike after authorities meet one demand and reportedly pledge to meet the other. Iran
Iranian labor market on path to gender transformation While Iranian women have made advances in recent years, they still face the major challenge of being excluded from the labor market. Iran
Iran army chief's Turkey tour ends in promises of military cooperation Regional rivals Turkey and Iran are exchanging visits by top officials, brought together by deeply ingrained fears that Western powers are covertly egging on their respective Kurdish populations to weaken and dismember them. Syria
Venezuela's Maduro finds solidarity in Turkey When supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan look at the situation in Venezuela, they see a leader to be defended like their own instead of a situation to be avoided. Turkey
Saudi Arabia engages Iraq at Iran's dismay Iraq's rapprochement with Arab Sunni countries including Saudi Arabia is putting increased pressure on Iran. Saudi Arabia
What's behind Egyptian theater's revival? With new shows and stars taking the stage, Egyptian theater is taking on a new life. Egypt
