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
Why Kerry should have skipped his stop in Israel Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu depends on his right-wing Knesset members for his political survival, and is not interested in US Secretary of State John Kerry's efforts for some goodwill gestures toward the Palestinians. Palestine
8 steps to peaceful two-state solution Israeli-Palestinian-Egyptian-Jordanian security coordination is the key to any unilateral move on Israel's part. Palestine
Egypt is now publishing Friday sermons in English, but is anyone reading them? The Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf has recently launched an English version of its official Friday sermon, although accessing it might be impossible for those who don’t read Arabic. Egypt
Who is Iran's Nategh-Nuri? The possible leadership of Ali Akbar Nategh-Nuri in Iran's upcoming parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections may very well change the nature of the game in Iranian politics. Iran
Foodies invade ultra-Orthodox cuisine scene In Bnei Brak, the popularity of food stalls offering Eastern European cuisine has ultra-Orthodox leaders scrambling to control the resulting "idleness" of youths and others sitting in cafes and enjoying themselves. Israel
Rouhani: Jets are not toys to shoot down While the Rouhani administration has urged restraint and emphasized the need to focus on fighting terrorism, Iranian conservatives have condemned Turkey's shooting down of a Russian jet. Syria
From smoking weed to sexual harassment, Israel's Knesset members struggle with scandal Knesset member Yinon Magal is accused of improper behavior, Knesset member Oren Hazan mocked a handicapped colleague, and Sharon Gal had to resign from the Knesset in order to avoid a scandal. Israel
Freed Palestinian prisoner: Swap deal with Israel is worthless if it excludes the sick In an interview with Al-Monitor, freed Palestinian prisoner Mohammed Allan talks details about his detention and release, stressing that he would not hesitate for one moment to resume his hunger strike if the Israeli army were to put him under administrative arrest again. Palestine
Will Gaza’s public employees accept land in lieu of salaries? Hamas resorted to drastic measures to cater to the employee salary crisis, as the consensus government has been neglecting this issue since it was formed in 2014. Palestine
Erdogan gobbles up power in new Turkish government Turkey’s recently announced cabinet is stacked with loyal allies of the president, making it clear that this is the "government of Erdogan." Syria
Kerry, the tourist Secretary of State John Kerry has paid a visit to Israel amid an increasing wave of violence in Jerusalem and the West Bank, yet he has no new solutions to offer either side. Palestine
Who are 'Allah's lions'? A mysterious security force has taken the lead in operations in Turkey’s Kurdish areas, raising alarm with its heavy-handed methods and seemingly religious motivation. Turkey
