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
Have Israelis abandoned any hope for change? A bitter fate awaits Israel's democracy unless the Israeli silent majority shakes off its learned helplessness. Israel
US presidential candidates weigh in on Russia, Putin, Middle East Al-Monitor takes the pulse of the US presidential candidates' varied stances on the Middle East crises and on Vladimir Putin and his role in international politics. Syria
Potential solutions to Egypt-Ethiopia dam dispute remain murky Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan — embroiled in a dispute over Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam project — agree on hiring a new consulting company, but not much else. Egypt
After Saudi Embassy attack in Iran, top security officials fired Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has made a point of holding top security officials responsible for allowing the attack on the Saudi Embassy. Saudi Arabia
Why Syria will pay for Iran-Saudi rift Despite UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura's assurances to the contrary, the breakdown in ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia appears set to impact the fragile talks on Syria. Saudi Arabia
Palestinian industrial parks: Boon or bondage? The Jenin industrial project is scheduled to start operating this year, with opponents claiming that such projects are in direct conflict with the Palestinian Authority's goal of becoming a fully independent and sovereign state. Palestine
Water war could leave Turkish Cyprus high and dry A fight over profits has disrupted the water supply from Turkey to Turkish Cyprus less than three months after a unique water pipeline was inaugurated, threatening to leave Turkish Cypriots with neither water nor vital financial aid from Ankara. Turkey
Could Iran-Saudi conflict provide Turkey 'graceful exit' from Syria? Turkish reactions to the Jan. 2 execution of Saudi Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr are quite telling for the future of Ankara’s regional policy. Saudi Arabia
New Mossad chief brings touch of Bond, lots of reality to the job Yossi Cohen, the well-groomed new head of Mossad, has a challenging road ahead in adapting his agency to deal with the diverse and convoluted equations of potential threats to Israel. Israel
Israeli media veers right Israeli media focused on the less significant details when covering the capture of the Tel Aviv gunman, instead of the main story concerning relations between Jews and Arabs in the country. Israel
How Bibi buried plan to develop Israeli Arab sector Three days after its approval, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has killed a historic plan to invest in the Israeli-Arab sector by imposing three conditions that cannot be met. Israel
