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
Hamas hedging its bets in region Hamas appears to have adopted a new regional policy of avoiding taking sides and nurturing good relations with anyone willing to accept the group. Qatar
Popular anger at islands transfer highlights Egypt’s polarized society Cairo erupts in protests over the proposed handover of two Egyptian Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia as protesters question the Egyptian government's intentions behind the deal. Saudi Arabia
Iranian hard-liners use Tehran attacks to snipe at Rouhani Though Iranian hard-liners have quickly seized the June 7 terrorist attacks in Tehran as an opportunity to rally forces, it is unclear whether their security-focused discourse will gain steam. Iran
Iranian Reformists lash out over Tillerson's hints at regime change Iranian Reformists notably join hands in response to the Trump administration’s signals that it is reverting to a policy of regime change toward the Islamic Republic. United States
Erdogan tones down rhetoric in light of Qatar's fate Turkey fears it could be next in line to be ostracized in the region due to guilt by association with Qatar and the Muslim Brotherhood. Saudi Arabia
Kurds no safer after US shoots down Syrian jet Though Syrian Kurds are widely celebrating the US downing of a regime fighter jet, their ally's move has made them a bigger target than ever. Syria
Turkey’s opposition head leads march for justice Turkey’s main opposition leader is heading a march from Ankara to Istanbul in his most powerful protest so far against the government’s toughening crackdown on dissent. Turkey
Israel sees Abbas' silence on police attack as sign of surrender For Israel, the silence of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas following the attack on an Israeli border police officer is part of an attempt to appease hard-liners within Fatah. Palestine
Turkey reverses course as mediation efforts flop in Gulf Turkey’s immediate support of Qatar has exposed its lack of leverage with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states and left it scrambling for a way out of an intractable situation. Qatar
New app helps Egypt's Nubians retain traditional tongue Nubi, an app conceived by a young Egyptian entrepreneur, offers a fun way for young Nubians to keep two of their heritage languages alive. Egypt
The geopolitics behind race for eastern Syria Fast-paced developments between the various players of the Syrian war raise questions about the geopolitical importance of the northeastern region. Syria
Qatari crisis risks sparking new Israeli-Hamas confrontation The Qatar crisis might lead to a showdown between Israel and Hamas, with key Arab states dismissing the Islamist movement as a terrorist organization, leaving it vulnerable to Israeli attack and pressuring Qatar to drop support for it. Legacy: Gulf
