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
Zionist Camp digging itself deeper hole with new campaign The Zionist Camp’s “Netanyahu’s Hidden Taxes” campaign will be remembered as one of the most detached and disengaged political efforts in years. Israel
Will Putin invite Netanyahu, Abbas to Moscow? The United States, France and Russia could join forces to form a new Middle East axis that will promote the two-state process. Palestine
Erdogan's money troubles Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on citizens to convert their dollars to Turkish lira to shore up the economy, but many are choosing other options. Turkey
Iran's Cabinet votes to change national currency Decades after the first plan to slash zeros from the Iranian rial, President Hassan Rouhani’s Cabinet has sent a bill to parliament to make changes to the country's currency. Iran
Is Israel’s education minister abandoning secular schools? Recent data indicates that Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett is using his budget to inject more orthodox and national values into schools, reducing the budget for teaching democratic and pluralistic values. Israel
Will new Fatah leaders' fluency in Hebrew make a difference? The Palestinian leaders who were elected for Fatah's Central Committee speak Hebrew fluently, which some analysts say will help break the language barrier during talks with Israelis. Palestine
Israel's controversial settlement bill provokes Palestinian blitz Palestinians believe that the Israeli regularization bill, designed to authorize settlements built on Palestinian lands, serves as a "smoking gun," proving that Israel is not interested in negotiations. Palestine
Why Iran's currency is suddenly wobbling After years of relative stability, the Iranian rial is once again wobbling — but why? Iran
How a pet monkey upset Libya's fragile tribal relations A pet monkey caused a violent clash between two of Libya's main tribes and former allies, reflecting the fragile relations between clans that could be detrimental to the country's future. Libya
Why some Egyptians prefer Syrian wives Syrian women in Egypt are sought after by some Egyptian men who think they are preferable to their Egyptian counterparts, amid fears of exploitation of their financial status. Egypt
New documentary on Egyptian conscription faces strong criticism An Al Jazeera documentary about Egypt’s military conscription was broadcast to a wave of protests from officials in Cairo. Egypt
Iraq's Caucasus tribes demand formal recognition Iraq's Caucasus tribes — the Circassians, Chechens and Dagestanis — are joining together in the hopes of being recognized as an official minority group in the Iraqi Constitution. Iraq
