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
Saudis make surprise trip to Iraq: Why now? Saudi Arabia is making overtures to Iraq as Iran's influence expands in the region. Saudi Arabia
Satire under siege in south Damascus With the threat of having to evacuate their homes hanging over their heads, activists and artists still manage to produce the satirical web series "Southern Sketch" in south Damascus. Syria
Why some in Fatah aren't pleased about new deputy leader Marwan Barghouti was not selected for the position of deputy leader of Fatah, despite the many votes he won during Fatah’s 7th congress, raising criticism within the movement. Palestine
Benghazi blowback hamstrings US role in post-IS Iraq Congress is weighing America's role after Mosul amid looming budget cuts and paralyzing partisanship. Iraq
Turkey downplays Barzani's support for HDP Now that Iraqi Kurdistan's president has left Istanbul, Turkey is denying reports that he had appealed to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to free several prominent Kurdish politicians from jail, probably because suggestions that Barzani was lobbying on behalf of Turkey's pro-Kurdish parties complicated Erdogan's efforts to woo Kurdish voters in the run-up to the April 16 referendum. Turkey
How Israel’s Gaza War report became a political battlefield Missing the purpose of the state comptroller's report to debate the Gaza War, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon are busy defending themselves while Education Minister Naftali Bennett marks a political victory. Israel
How Iran's hard-line media reacted to Oscar win While Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar for “The Salesman” was warmly welcomed by moderates and Reformists, the hard-line media tried to discredit the achievement, opining the award was politically motivated. United States
Fictional president falls victim to censorship in Turkey A short comedy film becomes the latest victim of censorship in Turkey, as authorities seem to grow pricklier ahead of a critical plebiscite in April. Turkey
Turkey's AKP scrambles to contain crisis ahead of key vote Turkey’s government has enacted a series of economic measures to woo voters ahead of a key constitutional referendum, but the threat of the economic crisis is far from over. Turkey
Graphic novel illustrates life of Syrian refugees in Lebanon A French NGO launched a project, with the help of five artists from Syria, Lebanon and France, to publish a graphic novel on the financial, emotional and social struggle of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. Lebanon
Why Iraq's Shiites are wary of Sadr's 'Initial Solutions' Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's proposal for national reconciliation in the post-Islamic State era has attracted support from Sunnis, but Shiites not so much. Originals
What's behind Israeli Cabinet's anti-polygamy plan? The Israeli Cabinet has created a plan to strictly enforce an anti-polygamy law from 1977, but why now? Palestine
