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
Military wipes its hands of Turkish politics Rumors and denials of a possible coup by the Turkish military are a symptom of the malignant political atmosphere in the country. Turkey
How one Palestinian with a camera rattled Israelis Ever since he taped the incident in which an IDF soldier shot an already injured Palestinian attacker in Hebron, Imad Abu Shamsiya has been receiving death threats from extreme-right activists. Palestine
Has the individual intifada peaked? Collaboration between Israeli and Palestinian security forces has reduced the scale of the individual intifada. Palestine
Latest scandal unlikely to rattle Netanyahu's coalition Despite Interior Minister Aryeh Deri being investigated for corruption, most observers believe the Israeli government is stable and unlikely to fall apart. Israel
Syrian Kurds proceed with federal structures despite Turkish threats Washington gets the Erdogan treatment; Syrian Kurds establish federal institutions; Hamas closes Iranian charity. Palestine
Turkish bodyguards take Washington by force After assaulting a deputy in Ecuador, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s bodyguards this time terrorize the media and protesters in Washington. Syria
Are Iranian hard-liners backing Trump? Iranian newspapers have returned after a two-week hiatus, with one hard-line editor offering up what seems to be an endorsement of US presidential candidate Donald Trump. Iran
Welcome to one of the most exotic islands in the world Socotra, a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean known for its vast biodiversity, seeks to regain its strategic role to support the country’s economy. United Arab Emirates
How united is the GCC? While Gulf states may all be united under the Gulf Cooperation Council name, their individual policies on foreign intervention vary greatly. Saudi Arabia
How calling out corruption cost this top Egyptian official his job President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s decision to fire Hisham Geneina, the head of the state’s top auditing authority, following Geneina’s statements on mass corruption in the country has caused controversy. Egypt
Is Turkey headed for a housing bubble? Will Turkey’s housing sector, which leads the world in price increases, continue to attract foreign investors? Turkey
What Saudi Arabia is doing to save water Saudi Arabia’s self-sufficiency policy has led to the overconsumption of water, a resource that Saudi Arabia critically needs. Countries
