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
Boosting ties with Moscow will come at a cost for Hamas Establishing a relationship with a superpower such as Russia bodes well for Hamas, but Moscow will expect flexibility on the movement's part in return. Palestine
Egypt's economy trapped in vicious cycle of IMF debts Egypt is expecting a new rise of prices due to the IMF loan requirements, while the country has not yet recovered from the aftermath of the economic decisions taken in November 2016. Egypt
Russia remains unconcerned by Trump's anti-Iran rhetoric US President Donald Trump tells the Saudis what they want to hear, but Russian experts don't expect him to renege on the Iran deal. Saudi Arabia
Israeli-Arab 'diva of Middle Eastern music' empowers coexistence The prestigious Israel Festival opens with Nasreen Qadri's songs in Arabic and Hebrew in support of coexistence. Palestine
Senate tones down Iran sanctions bill after input from Obama team The Senate Foreign Relations Committee insists the bill it cleared May 25 doesn’t violate the nuclear deal. Congress
Iraq's Sinjar heats up again as PMU closes in The world's attention has turned back to Iraq's Sinjar as Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Units approach during operation to liberate Mosul and Yazidi loyalties worry Turkey. Iraq
Expulsion of Iraqi forces has lessons for Iranians today On the anniversary of the liberation of a southwestern city from invading Iraqi forces, Iranian officials see lessons for today. Iraq
Iran's election results a win-win for Khamenei Even though the conservative candidate in Iran's presidential candidate did not win, Ayatollah Khamenei is looking for ways to spin the election as a victory for the conservatives. Iran
'Fake news' sparks real crisis in the Gulf Controversial statements reported by Qatar's state news agency and later attributed to a hack have revealed deep tension among members of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Saudi Arabia
Jerusalem Day celebrations hide sad reality The reality of impoverished, neglected and undeveloped East Jerusalem is a far cry from the glossy image of the city presented at the celebration of 50 years of unification. Israel
Europe, France plan active Middle East policy Newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron wants France to take a central role in international diplomacy and in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Palestine
Jerusalem Day and the country without a capital Even Donald Trump wants to keep the peace in Jerusalem, which is more than can be said of Benjamin Netanyahu's government. Palestine
