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
Families of IS members evicted from liberated areas in Iraq Families of Islamic State members have been evicted from the liberated areas in Iraq by the local authorities or security forces, to avoid revenge and conflict in the local communities. Iraq
Food vs. guns: Will Hamas chose Egypt or Iran? The military wing of Hamas in Gaza pressures the new boss Yahya Sinwar to mend ties with Iran, while the residents of the Gaza Strip need the assistance of Egypt against the misery of the long closure. Palestine
No breakthrough expected at new Syria talks Expectations were modest for a new round of Syria talks set to get underway in Geneva Feb. 23, with the new US administration still formulating its policies. Syria
Trial begins for murder of Turkish commando who stopped coup attempt Turks are closely watching the trial of those accused of murdering special forces commando Omer Halisdemir, who was killed in the line of duty as he played a key role in stopping last summer’s coup attempt. Turkey
Can Iran's Khamenei rule out ‘national reconciliation’? Despite his stated skepticism of the idea of national reconciliation, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may in effect be maneuvering to decide the terms of such a reconciliation. Iran
Is Ahmadinejad defying Khamenei’s 'advice' to abandon ambitions? Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is believed to be back in the game with his former deputy’s announcement that he intends to run in the upcoming presidential elections. Iran
Turkish-Iranian rivalry hits peak as Syria talks kick off Both countries accuse each other of destabilizing the region and undermining security in Iraq and Syria. Syria
How Moses cartoon killed Turkish satirical magazine A cartoon ridiculing Moses brought about the swift demise of a satirical magazine without a political or legal decision having been made. Turkey
The real story behind secret Aqaba summit on Mideast peace According to reports, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participated a year ago in a secret meeting in Aqaba with US Secretary of State John Kerry, Jordanian King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Palestine
Egypt's Sisi turns to soccer to score political goal Though a cynical view holds that Cairo was using the national soccer team as a way to distract the people from their country's challenges, its support for Egypt's team at the Africa Cup of Nations has helped rally Egyptians together. Egypt
Why Israeli opposition head really wanted to join Bibi's government News of the Aqaba summit and the political and diplomatic events surrounding it lead to the inevitable conclusion that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has no interest in the two-state vision and a regional peace initiative. Palestine
What's behind recent spate of abandoned newborns in Gaza? Three newborn babies were recently found in the streets of the Gaza Strip, raising questions about the reasons that could either be related to poverty or to illegitimate relations that the conservative society in Gaza rejects. Palestine
