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
Khomeini family breaks taboo, backs Rouhani For the first time after the demise of the founder of the Islamic Republic, the family of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini has expressed support for a candidate in a presidential election. Iran
Who's behind campaign to probe Rouhani's doctoral thesis? Accusations of plagiarism in President Hassan Rouhani’s doctoral thesis first surfaced in 2013. Four years later, ahead of Iran’s May 19 presidential election, a group of students has decided to look into the matter more closely. Iran
DC treated to Turkish-style crackdown on pro-Kurdish demonstrators In a replay of last year's violence, the Turkish president's security detail was filmed beating up peaceful Syrian Kurdish protesters in Washington. Turkey
Voters keep Algeria’s legislative leaders in power despite economy, unemployment Islamists gained some influence in Algeria’s recent parliamentary elections, but the ruling party retained its position. Algeria
What Abbas hopes to achieve from Trump's Palestine visit Ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit to the West Bank, the Palestinian leadership is satisfied with its choice of strategy, consisting of opening communication channels with the new Trump administration and avoiding tensions on the ground. Palestine
Trump expected to waive Iran sanctions today Issuing the waivers would be a sign of the Trump administration’s begrudging inclination to go along with the nuclear deal, at least for now, even as it huddles with Sunni allies and Israel to push back on Iranian expansionism. United States
Erdogan-Trump: The most unsuccessful Washington visit ever History will record Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent visit to Washington as the most unsuccessful presidential visit ever to Washington. Turkey
Why southern Syria remains Jordan’s biggest security threat Amman and Washington's concern about an Iranian land corridor from Tehran to Beirut through Iraq and Syria has raised questions about steps Jordan might take along its border with southern Syria, into which extremists are expanding. Iraq
Iraqi activists, journalists terrorized by armed groups The kidnapping of a number of activists and journalists in Baghdad has members of Iraq's civil society worrying about their livelihood. Iraq
Syrian orphanages overcrowded with children traumatized by war An orphanage in Azaz, near Aleppo and the Turkish border, serves hundreds of Syrian children who lost their families in the ongoing war. Syria
The rise of the Eurasianist vision in Turkey The Eurasianist vision for Turkey has gone beyond rhetoric, gaining weight especially with regard to defense and security, but its proponents are themselves divided on what the country’s Eurasian future should mean. Turkey
Did Trump endanger Israeli-US intelligence cooperation? Israel is at loss over revelations that President Donald Trump exposed sensitive intelligence information to Russia. Israel
