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
Are European nations discriminating against Syrian refugees? During a meeting between Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Bassil mentioned that some European countries are selecting Syrian refugees to move from Lebanon to Europe based on educational and religious standards. Lebanon
Tunisia cracks down on radicalization The Tunisian government is taking a number of steps to prevent radicalization and to counter religious extremism in the country. Tunisia
Palestinians work to keep Nakba memory alive Few Palestinian institutions and individuals are working on preserving the memories and stories of refugees who lived through the Nakba in 1948, in the absence of an official national project. Palestine
Film festival opens amid Gaza's ruins Children and residents from the Shajaiyah neighborhood in Gaza, which suffered mass destruction and massacres during the 2014 war, attended the Karama Human Rights Film Festival, featuring poignant movies about the tragedies. Palestine
Hezbollah courts media outlets Hezbollah gave the media a tour of parts of western Syria after seizing territory previously held by Jabhat al-Nusra. Lebanon
Bahrain bristles at threat to move 5th Fleet The House passed an annual defense bill that requires the Navy to plan for a potential relocation. Legacy: Gulf
Nasrallah warns of impending Arsal battle Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah outlines some factors that seem to announce an upcoming clash in Arsal between Hezbollah fighters and IS and Jabhat al-Nusra militants. Lebanon
Iran women's magazine forced to close A prominent Iranian magazine dedicated to women's issues has been suspended over accusations that it promotes unmarried cohabitation. Iran
Struggle of Negev region against layoffs The well-connected employees of Israel Chemicals have succeeded in making waves against a layoff plan, but there's little correlation between their struggle and the socio-economic problems of the Negev residents. Israel
Will Israel join Turkey-Saudi coalition? The common geostrategic interests of Israel and Turkey are greater than ever before. Israel
Tensions increase between Hamas, Salafists Hamas-affiliated security forces have been waging a large-scale arrest campaign targeting Salafists, while Gaza’s fate seems to hang in the balance. Palestine
Khamenei adviser slams US over Fordow Iranian officials have said that the United States has gone back on its statements regarding the underground enrichment facility of Fordow. Iran
