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
Resetting Turkey’s Syria policy Ankara is trying to regain its lost influence over Syria with a radical change in policy, but its past mistakes make that a difficult challenge. Israel
How Erdogan spins flaws into gold Turkish people are falling in love with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan all over again in the post-coup era despite the emergency decrees, increasing terror attacks and continuous purges. Turkey
Sunni fear grows as PMU participation in Mosul battle confirmed Iraqi government approved officially the participation of the Popular Mobilization Units in the Mosul battle, which is supported by the United States and Iran; however, Sunni parties are afraid of this decision. Iraq
Israelis, Palestinians prepare for next US president While the Palestinians prepare different strategies depending on the candidate who wins the US election, the Israelis plan to stick with the same approach in either case. Palestine
Forget the Riviera: Women find summer fun at Gaza beach homes Women in Gaza have been renting private vacation properties this summer where they can lounge, laugh and swim more freely. Palestine
Has US taken on role of Israeli domestic opposition? While opposition leaders Isaac Herzog and Yair Lapid keep silent over growing Israeli construction in West Bank settlements, the United States has been issuing rapid-fire condemnations of the government's actions. Palestine
Senior Iran cleric faces down culture minister over concerts In Iran, a conservative cleric is continuing to block musical concerts in defiance of the Culture Ministry, leading others to do the same, undercutting the authority of President Hassan Rouhani. Iran
Can this mystical musical tradition make comeback in Egypt? Some Egyptian artists are attempting to revive Zar folk music, believed to have been brought to Egypt from Ethiopia and Sudan. Egypt
Could Liberman's West Bank plan play into Hamas' hands? Palestinians say the benefits and punishments plan introduced by Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman is doomed to fail because it seeks to replace President Mahmoud Abbas with other leading Palestinians. Palestine
Why weakened post-coup Turkey may drift from the West Since the failed coup, it seems Turkey has developed an elaborate conspiracy theory blaming a triumvirate of Kurds, Gulenists and the "Supreme Mind" — the United States. Turkey
