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
Netanyahu’s empathy for Hebron shooter reveals a lot about Israel The support by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his party members for the IDF soldier convicted of manslaughter in Hebron demonstrates the moral decline of the Likud. Israel
Egyptian restaurant captures customers with jail decor A new prison-themed restaurant in Cairo serves customers life and death sentences in sandwich form. Egypt
Rival Libyan leaders agree to elections, but challenges remain Although neither yet recognizes the other’s legitimacy, Libya’s military strongman Khalifa Hifter and Fayez al-Sarraj, the prime minister of the Tripoli-based government, agreed during a meeting in France to hold elections in a bid to end the country's conflict. Libya
Archives belie Israel's narrative of Palestinian conflict Early members of the Zionist movement and later Israelis have consistently attempted to control the narrative of the conflict with the Palestinians, including by seizing photographic evidence of Palestine and the Palestinians' history. Palestine
Feature film to mark new beginnings for Gaza cinema The Gaza Strip's closed movie theaters will reopen at the end of the summer for the first feature film made by a local company. Palestine
Despite probe, questions remain after Syrians die in Lebanese custody Four Syrians detained by the Lebanese army in a raid on Syrian refugee camps in Arsal died less than 48 hours into their detention, thus raising questions about the reason behind their deaths, as several photos showed signs of torture on their bodies. Lebanon
Netanyahu’s legacy: Dividing Jews and uniting Arabs Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling in the recent Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif crisis threatens to turn the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a nationalist struggle into a religious conflagration. Palestine
Sisi now controls Egypt's top courts Legal experts are questioning the constitutionality of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's use of his new power to appoint judges, raising questions about the future of the Egyptian judiciary. Egypt
Maliki’s visit to Moscow reflects many facets Iraq’s vice president may have had upcoming elections and Iranian influence in mind when he visited Moscow recently. Iraq
Pentagon says US-backed forces have almost surrounded Raqqa Pentagon officials say the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have liberated about half of the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa. Syria
Iran upholds sentences for Saudi Embassy attackers As Iran sent pilgrims for hajj after skipping the pilgrimage to Mecca in 2016, an Iranian court upheld the sentences of 10 individuals for an attack on the Saudi Embassy. Saudi Arabia
Ankara decries ‘provocative’ remarks by US anti-IS envoy Turkey continues to be concerned about the relationship between the United States and the Syrian Kurds. Iraq
