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 regional powers finally reaching consensus on Syria? Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari spoke to Iranian media about Syria after meeting with Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia's deputy foreign minister. Syria
Will investors shell out cash for Egyptian citizenship? To encourage foreign investment and help the country's financial recovery, the Egyptian parliament is considering amending the constitution to grant citizenship to investors. Egypt
What's behind AKP's allegations of Gulen-PKK ties? Some fear the increasing AKP-inspired allegations of a relationship between the PKK and the Gulen movement may be a harbinger of a new round of attacks on Kurds. Turkey
What's next following Erdogan-Putin summit? Ankara was delighted with the recent Turkish-Russian summit, while Moscow sounded guardedly optimistic, but a true assessment of the meeting's implications will take time. Syria
Are Israeli politicians encouraging violent discourse online? According to a special report prepared to mark Tisha B’Av, which commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples, the most violent pages on Israeli social networking sites belong to politicians. Israel
Why Netanyahu's 'Asian option' is raising eyebrows in Israel With a difficult relationship between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama as the backdrop, Netanyahu has invested obvious effort in getting closer to China and Russia. Israel
Iraq's environment faces crucial challenge Environmental deterioration in Iraq has reached a critical point due to a lack of awareness among citizens, the destructive impact of consecutive wars and the absence of effective rehabilitation plans. Iraq
What’s next for Egypt’s IS affiliate after killing of leader? After the Egyptian military announced Aug. 4 that the head of the Sinai branch of the Islamic State was killed in a series of airstrikes, observers are split over what comes next for the group. Egypt
Russia-Turkey rapprochement has limits Russia and Turkey have made strides in improving their ties, but the relationship is going to need far more than the issuance of commemorative plates celebrating the Aug. 9 meeting of the countries' presidents in the Constantine Palace's Greek Room. Turkey
Saudi Arabia may keep playing 'Iran card' to defer decision on Yemen Yemen victim of Saudi-Iran hostility; Islamic State tries, and fails, to recruit Kurds; Al-Monitor resumes series on lobbying by Middle East governments. Saudi Arabia
Why Egypt banned its police from talking to the media While Cairo argues new press restrictions will ensure journalists speak to informed sources, others fear the limitations will weaken police accountability. Egypt
US election 2016: Can either candidate have a good week? Here's what happened on the campaign trail the week of Aug. 8. Syria
