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
Are Turkish leaders ill-informed about their own history? Many question whether Ankara has aspirations in Iraq linked to a misunderstanding of Turkish history. Iraq
Turkey as close as ever to presidential regime An opposition leader’s call for a referendum on a presidential regime has raised the specter of fresh turmoil for Turkey, threatening a rough wave of nationalism, an institutionalized authoritarianism and the demise of dialogue on the Kurdish problem. Turkey
Gaza University to launch first film major in Palestine A group of Palestinians who hold art degrees from Egypt are behind the first film studies major set to start by early 2017 at Gaza University, raising the hopes of many aspiring students. Palestine
Syrian regime promotes another image of the war-torn country The Syrian state media has been promoting a false image of the country and its capital, spreading images of untouched cities and holding entertainment events, while the war rages on in the opposition areas. Syria
Turkey’s misguided policies now haunt it at Mosul Turkey criticizes the Mosul operation but is doing everything possible to be part of it. Iraq
Are NGOs in Palestine up to the challenge? Civil society institutions in Palestine, which are in charge of documenting violations and providing aid for development projects, have recently come under criticism for failing to rid the Palestinians from the oppressive Hamas and Fatah regimes. Palestine
Welcome to Gaza's first deer farm A Palestinian citizen from the town of Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip has started raising deer in his garden that already holds rare birds, with the hope of someday turning the farm into a public zoo. Palestine
Hamas calls for return of Haniyeh’s government Hamas has accused the consensus government of failing to assume its responsibilities toward the Gaza Strip, which explains the movement’s recent call for the return of Ismail Haniyeh’s government to Gaza. Palestine
Will tension at sea lead to endless war in Yemen? The Yemeni war reached the sea after being confined to the mainland for 19 months, with international and regional players heading to the most important maritime route in the world. Yemen
Does Rouhani want to scrap Iran’s 5-year development plans? With the government’s sixth Five-Year Development Plan mired in controversy and yet to be approved after nine months, some Iranian economists now say these plans are a thing of the past. Iran
Why the March of Hope inspired few Israeli politicians Many Israeli politicians chose to ignore the March of Hope for fear of being branded "leftist," although participants spanned the spectrum. Palestine
Gaza agriculture on brink of collapse With new Israeli encroachment in the name of security and restrictions on the importation of chemicals and fertilizers, even more of Gaza's farmers are being forced to abandon their lands despite a near-total lack of other employment options. Palestine
