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
Why are young Iranians losing interest in marriage? Societal and economic factors have led to a decline in marriage rates, despite the government's desire to see an increase in population. Iran
Iraq's growing grave market As death has become even more a part of daily life in Iraq with the increasing violence and terrorist attacks, people started marketing plots at Al-Salam Valley cemetery, which holds religious significance. Iraq
Turkish court stirs marriage debate Turkey’s Constitutional Court has ruled that a civil marriage is no longer compulsory for religiously married citizens, worrying civil groups about the implications for women's rights. Turkey
How some Armenians are reclaiming their Christian faith Armenians in Turkey, who for a century have been forced to conceal their identities, are trying to return to their roots. Turkey
P5+1 asked to interview Iran’s security council secretary Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani has said that the six world powers had requested to interview him as part of a comprehensive nuclear deal. Iran
Turkey plays down death toll of Kurdish youths The steady stream of Turkey's Kurdish youths killed while fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have failed to make the news, further fueling tensions between the Turkish government and its Kurdish population. Syria
Russia and the nuclear-free zone While Russia blames the US, the UK and Canada for not supporting a recent international agreement on a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East, Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy firm is said to be exploring the options of providing Saudi Arabia with a nuclear power plant. Russia
Israeli leadership ignores international warning signs The Vatican's recognition of Palestine and the large support for a committee on Israel's approach to Palestinian soccer, should serve as warning signs before Israel becomes isolated in the international arena. Palestine
Sisi’s intervention in internal Wafd dispute raises questions Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi intervened in the internal dispute among Wafd Party members, which stirred criticism as to the extent of the president’s role in partisan life. Egypt
Capitol Hill counts down days until Iran nuclear deadline A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of June 1. Iraq
Baghdad stumbles in response to Ramadi refugees 180,000 Iraqis now displaced by the Islamic State from Ramadi; Islamic State benefits from Saudi military intervention in Yemen; Jabhat al-Nusra’s attempted makeover. Saudi Arabia
Erdogan tries to rewrite history Recep Tayyip Erdogan's recent decision to change the date commemorating the conquest of Istanbul from May 29 to May 30 seems to fall into a pattern of altering dates of public holidays to correspond with important political dates — in this case, the June 7 elections. Turkey
