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
The de-Gulenification of Turkey Western observers first must understand the severity of Turkey’s coup plot and the complexity of the religious group that seems to be behind it. Turkey
Kurdish politician still missing in Turkey A young Kurdish politician, Hursit Kulter, has been missing in Turkey since late May, reviving memories of arbitrary detentions and extrajudicial killings during the height of the Kurdish conflict in the 1990s. Turkey
How Bibi turned media wrath from a curse into an asset Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is always complaining about the press, allegedly against him, while promoting his own freebie newspaper. Israel
Century-old Palestinian Scout movement makes comeback Considered to be one of the oldest in the world, the Palestinian Scout movement has regained international recognition after being accepted into the World Organization of the Scout Movement. Palestine
Egypt’s doctors take on army over HIV ‘cure’ controversy The controversy caused in Egypt by a new device to treat hepatitis C and HIV continues, with disciplinary action being recommended by the Medical Syndicate against four doctors involved in the case. Egypt
Do Israeli police take a soft stance on far-right incitement? Israeli web surfers post comments that incite hatred against Arabs, and the police are doing little to stop them. Israel
Maliki’s visit to Sulaimaniyah deepens split among Iraq's Kurds Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki visited Sulaimaniyah to welcome the coalition between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Movement for Change, deepening the dispute between Sulaimaniyah and Erbil. Iraq
How Egypt's Brotherhood helped counter Turkey's coup attempt Putting aside internal differences, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood united behind the Turkish government to thwart a coup attempt July 15, but questions remain about how important the group's support is for the Turkish president. Egypt
Iran judiciary: Corruption not limited to high salaries The spokesman for Iran's judiciary announced that a total of four individuals have so far been arrested with a case involving Bank Mellat. Iran
Critical meeting will determine fate of Turkish forces post-coup Recognizing the urgent need for military changes following the coup attempt, Turkey's leaders have moved up the date of their Supreme Military Council meeting to this week. Turkey
Series of scandals rocks Israeli Orthodox Zionism The gay-hate speech of Rabbi Yigal Levenstein, past statements by IDF Chief Rabbi Eyal Karim and the indictment of Gen. Ofek Buchris on alleged rape must drive Orthodox Zionism to do some serious soul-searching. Israel
How Erdogan used the power of the mosques against coup attempt Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan used state-employed imams to rally citizens to denounce the attempted coup July 15, highlighting the strength of Turkey's Religious Affairs Department. Turkey
