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
After its own citizens drown, Lebanese refocus on refugee crisis The refugee crisis in Lebanon has again made headlines with the drowning deaths of Lebanese fleeing the border region due to the Syrian war and heading for Europe. Lebanon
Never mind rewriting history, Netanyahu is focused on revising reality Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is making efforts to denounce the Holocaust while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to tarnish Palestinians with falsehoods about the Palestinian leadership during WWII. Palestine
Remembering Rabin's vision Late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was a true leader, a pragmatic and coherent politician who could explain to the public why separating from the Palestinians was in the interests of Zionism, unlike Israel's current party leaders. Israel
NSC opens office to oversee Iran deal implementation NSC Senior Director for non-proliferation Paul Irwin is set to head a new NSC directorate on implementation of the Iran nuclear deal. Congress
Why Kerry is prioritizing Syria over Israeli-Palestinian peace Calming Israeli-Palestinian tensions is seen as limited mission as US Secretary of State John Kerry embarks on a new round of international diplomacy on Syria. Palestine
Why Iran doesn't want to stay in Yemen Despite hopes of expanded Iranian assistance, Yemen's Houthis are unlikely to receive the kind of help Tehran extends to Lebanon's Hezbollah. Saudi Arabia
Who is behind violence against the Kurds? Probes into a recent wave of mob violence against Kurds in Turkey suggest connivance between assailants, economic actors and the authorities. Turkey
Yemen's decaying religious history Historic sites are being destroyed by the civil war in Yemen’s once-peaceful city of Aden, known for its history of diversity and coexistence. Yemen
As popularity rises, Iran tries to control Telegram messaging app Iranian authorities have asked Telegram messaging service to block "immoral" content. Russia
Will there ever be a solution to the refugee crisis? Responses to the migration crisis are becoming increasingly diverse as governments turn a blind eye to the Syrian refugee and other crises. Egypt
Is Russian intervention in Syria pushing 'moderate jihadis' toward Islamic State? Russia's attacks on "moderate jihadi" groups appears to be pushing them to consider the possibility of uniting under the umbrella of the Islamic State. Syria
What will Erdogan do if AKP fails again? The prospect of yet another snap election in Turkey after the Nov. 1 polls should not be ruled out if the AKP fails again to clinch the parliamentary majority. Turkey
