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
What is Russia’s thinking on Libya? In its effort to pursue national security interests in the Middle East, Russia is increasingly involved in the conflict in Libya. Egypt
Iran’s private sector having hard time financing expansion While the Iranian debt market has greatly expanded in past years, providing an alternative to banks for financing, private sector firms are left out of this boom. Iran
Can 'uber for horses' stir up tourism in ancient Egyptian city? In an attempt to revive the ailing tourism industry, Egypt's government is trying out-of-the-box ideas, such as a ride-hailing app for horse carriages. Egypt
Why Iran won’t work as a bargaining chip between Russia, US Russia and Iran have enough overlapping interests to keep their relationship strong, even if the United States tries to interfere. Russia
Turkish government outsources urban security To make up for the security gap in southeastern cities and Istanbul, Turkey has resurrected the historical institution of neighborhood street watchmen. Turkey
How forex market became a gambling house in Turkey Thousands of Turks, eager to make quick money, have acquired big losses in leveraged transactions at the foreign exchange market, leading the authorities to intervene. Turkey
Lebanese president provokes outcry with Hezbollah comment President Michel Aoun stated in an interview that Lebanon needs Hezbollah’s arms to defend the country from potential Israeli aggression, stirring harsh criticism from his political opponents. Israel
Israeli centrist leader speaks, says little The measured response of Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid to the state comptroller’s Gaza war report reflects his ongoing strategy to become Israel's next prime minister. Palestine
Iraq, Iran agree to resolve dispute on joint oil fields After many years, Iraq and Iran have decided to form a joint committee to resolve differences about the oil fields between the two countries and the supply of a new oil pipeline to Iran. Iraq
Iraqis defiant as extremists threaten to attack Babylon After extremists reportedly threatened to attack the ancient site of Babylon, local Iraqis are swearing to protect both the city's antiquities and its character as a cultural center. Iraq
Will Hezbollah join Palestinian factions in confrontation with Israel? Amid calls to unify fronts between Palestinian resistance factions in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, experts envision many difficulties in this possibility of coordination. Palestine
Egypt hopes Chinese visitors can make up for Russian tourism decline Egypt's tourism sector is working to attract the largest possible number of tourists to offset its recent heavy losses, especially in light of the sharp decline in Russian tourism. Egypt
