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
When drones fall from the sky into Lebanon Two drones have fallen over Lebanon in just a few weeks, raising questions about their origin and whether the two crashes could be coincidental. Israel
Terrorists turn month of peace into time for war The holy month of Ramadan is considered a month of martyrdom and jihad for extremist organizations such as the Islamic State, which during this time recall the battles fought by Muslims throughout history. Iraq
AKP ponders what went wrong While skeptics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Justice and Development Party are still not very vocal, reality seems to be on their side. Turkey
Why Bibi is personally responsible for Iran policy failure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be held solely responsible for Israel's diplomatic failure on Iran, maintaining too much control over too many portfolios and surrounding himself with people who won't criticize him. Israel
House, Senate clash over aid to Egypt The Senate’s spending bill keeps human rights restrictions in place despite resistance from the House. Egypt
Iran nuclear deal delayed Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said an Iran nuclear deal would not be ready to be announced July 13, as China’s foreign minister urged the P5+1 and Iran to finalize the accord without further delay. Iran
Hamas hopes military muscle will be Ramadan must-see TV Palestinian TV productions have embarked on glorifying armed struggle against the Israelis in an attempt to raise awareness of the importance of carrying out military operations against them. Palestine
Iran nuclear deal with West could help it pivot East A nuclear deal could bring about the membership of Iran in the Russia and China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Egypt
Israeli defense minister says Iran deal will set off nuclear arms race in region In an interview with Al-Monitor, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon warns that the imminent agreement with Iran will strengthen it diplomatically and economically. Israel
Iranian supreme leader doubles down on struggle against American 'arrogance' In a speech to Iranian university students, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned about US influence in universities. Iran
Never-ending electricity crisis means lights out for Iraqis, again Power outages have become a commonplace happening in Iraq, where people now depend on more than one source to substitute for the government’s poor services. Iraq
Why is Israel trying to shut down this Palestinian TV station? For years, Palestine TV has dedicated some programming to their Palestinian brethren in Israel, and it was well-received. Palestine
