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
Aleppo's Christians see regime as last hope Five years into the Syrian conflict, Syria's Christians continue to fight for their existence, turning to the regime as a last resort. Syria
The new Saudi king, Egypt and the MB Saudi Arabia might be witnessing a slow shift in the region, especially since the new King Salman seems friendlier to Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood than his predecessor. Saudi Arabia
Bibi's win gives Palestinians chance at UN Palestinian leadership made a point of not reacting to the Israeli election campaign, but after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's victory they might again try the UN route, with more international support than last time. Palestine
What won't change in Netanyahu’s 'changing reality'? Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s explanation for his zigzag on the issue of a Palestinian state is that “reality has changed,” but this excuse cannot justify withdrawing from the only possible solution: an agreement based on the 1967 lines. Palestine
Netanyahu’s charm offensive Palestinians need to be united and move forward with their decisions to join the ICC and suspend the security coordination with Israel, as Benjamin Netantyahu will try, following his victory in the elections, to show political moderation. Palestine
Turkey sidelines itself in US-led coalition against IS Turkey prefers to be a "reluctant subcontractor" rather than active participant in the international coalition against the Islamic State; US envoy seems to contradict Kerry on Syria diplomacy; Israel faces possible "diplomatic siege" after election; majority of Americans back US negotiations with Iran; Al-Monitor endorses new global standards to protect freelance journalists. Palestine
The many names of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Al-Monitor traces the journey that led an unremarkable religious student to become head of the Islamic State and self-proclaimed Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Iraq
Iran's past nuclear activities come under scrutiny A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of March 23. Congress
Iranian VP works for change from within In an interview with Al-Monitor, Shahindokht Molaverdi, vice president for Women and Family Affairs, talks about her role advocating for women's rights and the importance of working from within the administration for change. Iran
Is there an Egyptian cotton conspiracy? Amid arguments chalking it up to global conspiracies and others to poor government management, Egypt’s cotton industry is on the decline, further crippling the country’s textile industry. Egypt
Egypt’s security forces look to cooperate with Bedouin The economic conference held in Sharm el-Sheikh surprisingly went through with no security incidents, as some Sinai residents say that the Egyptian security forces imposed strict measures to prevent any armed attack. Egypt
Did Rafsanjani lose today to win tomorrow? Hashemi Rafsanjani lost in the Assembly of Experts election for the chairmanship, but was it a gambit to bring voters out next year? Iran
