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
Egypt elections runoff overshadowed by election fraud Egypt political parties win the largest proportions of individual seats in the first phase of Egypt’s parliamentary elections tainted by allegations of vote-rigging. Egypt
Netanyahu's short-term thinking Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu feels threatened by Yisrael Beitenu head Avigdor Liberman's rising popularity over his management of the current wave of violence, which is why he keeps coming up with short-lived security ideas. Palestine
My visit to Temple Mount With hundreds of tourists, I visited the Temple Mount, and contrary to Palestinian accusations, Israel is not trying to change the status quo but cooperates with the Waqf guards during visits at the site. Palestine
How to bring peace to Israel Palestinian Knesset member Ahmad Tibi talked with Al-Monitor about the latest uprising in the Palestinian territories, saying though he advocates nonviolent resistance, peace will remain elusive until Israel ends the longest occupation the world has known. Palestine
Islamic State creeps in on Kurdish stronghold The discovery of an Islamic State cell in Diyarbakir, Turkey’s main Kurdish city, stokes fears that the extremist group is seeking to further fuel Kurdish-Turkish ethnic tensions. Turkey
Forget online dating, now the Turkish government will find you a spouse Struggling to recover decreasing youth support for the AKP, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu gambles on the sexual frustration of bachelors by promising to play matchmaker for the desperate. Turkey
After Iranian, Russian military advances Syrian opposition suffers setback in Aleppo Regime forces were able to retake large swathes of Aleppo’s southern countryside from the opposition, whose weaponry is insufficient in the face of Iranian and Russian ground and air support. Saudi Arabia
Turkey reconsiders security priorities The recent raid on Islamic State safe houses in Diyarbakir has shed light on the organization's activities in Turkey and prompted Turkey to reconsider its top security priorities. Turkey
What's happening in Gaza's detention centers? Al-Monitor was given exclusive access to testimonies of former female detainees who were subjected to several forms of torture, which officials deny. Palestine
Why Gaza's brides are getting married via Skype In light of the ongoing closure of the Rafah crossing, Palestinian couples find themselves forced to get married via Skype in proxy weddings. Palestine
Lebanon's schools do double duty to educate both Syrian, Lebanese students The Lebanese Ministry of Education is working with international donors to increase the country’s capacity to secure education for the large number of displaced Syrian children. Lebanon
When conflict arises, these Iraqis go to the madeef Madeefs have become a popular alternative to the traditional legal system in Iraq, with Iraqis seeking the assistance of tribes to settle disputes and conflicts. Iraq
