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
Wrestling’s Curby Cup next move in US-Iran sports diplomacy An event founded in the memory of a young American wrestler provides a new pathway for advancing people-to-people ties between the United States and Iran. Iran
Egyptian lawyer interrogated for drafting anti-torture law Negad El Borai might face jail time for drafting a law that counters police abuse and torture, which shows the restriction of freedoms in Egypt. Egypt
The fight goes on for Lebanon's LGBT community Despite a few modest achievements, the Lebanese lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community still struggles for acceptance and basic rights. Lebanon
Is Egypt's Brotherhood choosing escalation over peace? The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt today seems weaker and more poised to resort to violence. Egypt
What caused the clashes in Diyarbakir? Diyarbakir remains tense after recent intra-Kurd clashes. Turkey
Will Israel reach out to Syrian Druze? Israel fears getting entangled in the Syrian civil war, but might find it difficult to categorically refuse to help the Syrian Druze community. Israel
Overhauling Iraq’s intelligence services The political quota system and subsequent appointment of incompetent intelligence services leaders have severely hampered Iraq's ability to fight terrorist forces despite an abundance of confrontations and episodes from which to learn. Iraq
Hamas working to lower tensions in Lebanese camps With security tensions escalating in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, Hamas and Lebanese officials are discussing ways to avoid the camps being turned into arenas for settling regional scores. Palestine
How security forces keep critics quiet in 'progressive' UAE The enigmatic UAE security forces have perfected the art of silencing critics and created an environment in which nearly everyone is afraid to say anything remotely resembling criticism of the government. United Arab Emirates
Erdogan fears fall of Syria's Tell Abyad Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is angry with the joint Kurdish-Arab operation to get the Islamic State out of Tell Abyad. Syria
Turkish TV channels compete for Ramadan viewers Turkey's TV channels promote their shows and entertainment programs in the runup to Ramadan, revealing rifts among moderate and more pious Muslims, as well as the battle between the Justice and Development Party and the Gulen movement. Turkey
Senate to wrap up defense bill A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of June 15. Iraq
