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
Syrian cease-fire a delicate balance of vastly different goals Iran welcomes the Russian/US truce initiative in southern Syria, but will Russia be able to keep juggling the broad, and often conflicting, interests of the various players? Syria
Protests continue in Morocco despite crackdown Hirak, a protest movement active in Morocco’s marginalized Rif region, is still going strong despite brutal police repression and arrests. Morocco
Egypt takes stock of neglected antiquities Though its financial resources are limited, Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities is working to finally document the countless antiquities stored for decades in warehouses across the country. Egypt
New batch of PA employees in Gaza forced to retire The Palestinian Authority referred more than 6,000 civil employees to early retirement, allegedly to exert pressure on Hamas to dissolve the administrative committee, hand over the Gaza Strip and approve elections. Palestine
Turkey's divisions on display on 'Day of National Unity' Turkey's "Day of Democracy and National Unity" marking the defeat of last year's July 15 coup attempt turns into a celebration of the president and his Justice and Development Party. Turkey
Abu Mazen plays losing hand badly in Gaza Strip The Palestinian president faces a challenge from a bitter rival backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates; what is Saddam Hussein’s family doing in Qatar?; Russia and the United States wary of Turkish military intervention in Syria. Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia's dependent fees leave Egyptian expats in dire straits Dependents of expat workers in Saudi Arabia will be charged a dependent fee starting in 2017, which is a further strain on the salaries of foreign workers and will likely result in large numbers of families going back home. Saudi Arabia
Envoy to US says Turkey was ready to provide ‘tens of thousands of troops’ for Raqqa offensive Ambassador Serdar Kilic tells Al-Monitor that Turkey was willing to offer broad military support to the US-led operation to liberate the Islamic State's Syrian stronghold. Syria
Israel frets over Congress push to slash Palestinian aid over terror payments US lawmakers' efforts to further condition assistance to the Palestinian Authority is complicated by Israel's reluctance to undermine a key security partner. Palestine
Incessant scandals threaten US-Russia progress on Syria Moscow and Washington will need to safeguard any progress in their relations against fresh controversies and those opposed to cooperation. Syria
Arrest of rights activists 'chills' Turkey’s civil society Turkish civil society grapples with the arrests of human rights activists and academics as the government marks the anniversary of the failed military coup. Turkey
Turkey’s ‘great wall’ nearing completion Having finished most of the 435-mile-long wall on the Syria border, Turkey is to erect walls on its borders with Iran and Iraq. Turkey
