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
Congressional invite to MEK sparks furious backlash Former State Department officials are refusing to testify alongside Mujahedeen-e-Khalq leader Maryam Rajavi. Congress
Iran official warns water crisis could lead to mass migration The adviser for water, agricultural and environment to Iran’s vice president warns that if Iran doesn't cut its water exploitation in half, the country could see a mass exodus. Iran
Meshaal blocked major attack on Israel Head of Hamas' Political Bureau Khaled Meshaal in July prevented a mega tunnel attack of infiltration and hostage abduction, planned by the military branch, fearing an unprecedented Israeli military reaction. Palestine
US CEOs find crowded field in Iran A group of American executives found a warm welcome in Iran and plenty of company from other foreigners investigating post-sanctions business opportunities. Iran
Russia's recognition of Armenian genocide strains ties with Turkey Moscow’s acknowledgment of the Armenian genocide and President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Yerevan for the genocide commemorations shake Turkish-Russian ties. Turkey
Israel airlifts surrogates, babies from Nepal Israel is scrambling to bring home babies born to surrogate mothers in disaster-stricken Nepal, while its LGBT citizens are calling for surrogacy options in their own country. Israel
Northern Cyprus demands respect from Turkey The new Turkish Cypriot president, Mustafa Akinci, infuriated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as soon as he was elected by calling for a dignified relationship between Turkish Cypriots and Ankara. Turkey
Syrian regime continues destruction of Aleppo Airstrikes continue to pound Aleppo, and despite mounting casualties and public discontent, the regime does not seem likely to budge. Syria
PLO fails to address Yarmouk crisis The crisis in the Yarmouk refugee camp, which emerged after the Islamic State took control of the camp, reveals the weakness of the PLO, as the responsible party to handle the situation of Palestinian refugees around the world. Palestine
Will Iran nuclear deal lead to rapprochement with Cairo? The pending nuclear agreement with Iran could provide some much-needed balance for Egypt's shifting foreign policy in the region. Egypt
Is Pakistan pivoting away from Saudi Arabia? Pakistan is facing strong domestic opposition against providing support to the Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen, and its parliament came to a unanimous decision to stay neutral in the conflict, to the chagrin of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia
After 15 years some Palestinian doctors now drive into Israel An Israeli decision permitting Palestinian doctors to drive across checkpoints and enter Israel comes as part of a series of Israeli moves to ease the travel restrictions. Palestine
