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
How a statuette dashed hopes for Turkish-Egyptian reconciliation While a visit to Egypt by representatives of Turkey’s Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges initially sparked hopes of a reconciliation between Ankara and Cairo, things seem unlikely to change anytime soon. Egypt
What will control over Aleppo’s military base mean for Assad? An expert on the situation in Syria talks to Al-Monitor about the repercussions of the Syrian army’s recent operation, where it succeeded in lifting the siege of the Kuweires military air base east of Aleppo. Syria
Has the Islamic State returned to Lebanon? Details of the twin explosions that hit Beirut’s southern suburb — Hezbollah’s stronghold — still need to be revealed, while the Islamic State has already claimed responsibility for it. Lebanon
Are Syria’s Salafi movements witnessing a split? The creation of Jaish al-Sham might be indicative of widening ideological fissures inside Ahrar al-Sham and other Salafi movements in Syria. Syria
Hamas-Fatah dispute hampers commemorations for Arafat’s death Fatah and Hamas are fighting over the venue for holding commemoration events of Yasser Arafat’s death, while the Palestinian public seems to be divided on whether these events should still be held 11 years after his death. Palestine
Why it's time for US to take firm approach to two-state solution Instead of contemplating a passive approach, the United States could declare 2018 the year of permanent status for the two-state solution, establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel. Palestine
Iran doubts US goals in Syria talks Iran's deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, said Iran will decide whether to participate in the next round of Vienna II talks on Syria after reviewing whether the United States is working behind the scenes to push its own agenda. Saudi Arabia
How to solve Lebanese civil war disappearances The International Committee of the Red Cross has a plan to identify the remains of those who went missing during Lebanon’s civil war, but support from the government is agonizingly slow. Lebanon
Turkey's path to dictatorship Erdogan’s renewed ambitions to install an authoritarian presidential system in Turkey are raising concerns he might further restrict freedom of the press and open a path for a dictatorship. Turkey
Kurdish infighting complicates Sinjar offensive In the wake of a massive assault on the Islamic State for the city of Sinjar, Iraq, there is speculation about how disagreements among Kurdish factions will play out. Iraq
Lebanon continues to struggle under weight of Syrian refugee crisis Lebanon is struggling to cope with the Syrian displacement crisis amid weak international action. Lebanon
As European dream fades, Iraqi Kurds return home Thousands of Kurds who fled to Europe are now seeking to return to Iraq after facing an even harsher reality there. Iraq
