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
Senior Hezbollah official speaks out In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, the head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc in Lebanon discusses the war in Syria and the party’s role there, the Saudi war against Yemen and the presidential stalemate in Lebanon. Yemen
Erdan challenges Netanyahu, refuses Cabinet position In a surprising move, senior Likud member and former Interior Minister Gilad Erdan rejected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s offer of a Cabinet position and is staying out of the new government. Israel
Defense spending bill provides boost to Jordan House Defense appropriators released a FY 2016 bill that seeks to help Jordan fight the Islamic State. Iraq
Khamenei orders schooling for all Afghan children in Iran Iran's supreme leader has ordered that all Afghan children in Iran, regardless of their residency status, be schooled. Iran
What do attacks on Turkey's pro-Kurdish party mean? Simultaneous bombing attacks against the pro-Kurdish People's Democracy Party show that Turkey may be heading toward a wild finish in key June 7 parliamentary elections. Turkey
Is there a potato conspiracy in Turkey? A fall in potato crops, increased exports to Syria and Iraq and hoarding have led to an unprecedented potato shortage in Turkey. Turkey
Censorship issues raised at Tehran book fair Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has harshly criticized book censorship in Iran, but existing laws confine his administration. Iran
Russia weighs in on Yemen After Russia's shift to soft power in the Middle East, President Vladimir Putin discusses Russia's "need to abandon ‘the law of the strongest’ and ‘rule of the fist.’” Yemen
Knesset speaker calls for unity government In an interview with Al-Monitor, Knesset speaker Yuli (Yoel) Edelstein argues that the new coalition is too fragile to survive, and calls on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to form a unity government with the Zionist Camp. Israel
Netanyahu's new government already on shaky ground With the numerous challenges facing the new Netanyahu government, and with a slender majority, many are predicting his coalition won't last long. Israel
Israel debates ethics of IDF during Gaza war An NGO report has stirred controversy in Israel over the behavior of IDF soldiers during the Gaza war and the policies of the military forces. Palestine
