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
Iranians challenge media ban on Khatami Iranians have challenged the media ban on a former president, which received unusually high attention because of his sister's death. Iran
Grandmothers bear the brunt of Syrian orphan crisis Fractured families and orphaned children mean that Syrian grandmothers are now playing the role of parents. Jordan
Hamas denies abuse, detainment of Fatah leaders Several Fatah leaders told Al-Monitor that the Hamas-affiliated security apparatuses in Gaza arrested them and violated their basic human rights, which Hamas rushed to deny. Palestine
Egypt’s terrorism law whittles down opposition Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued a new decision regarding Egypt’s anti-terrorism law, running the risk of labeling most opposition groups and human rights organizations as terrorist entities. Egypt
Turkey is becoming more secular, not less In a new book, Volkan Erit argues that despite an increasingly Islamist government, Turkish society is actually becoming less strident in its religious tastes. Turkey
Asmaa al-Ghoul on why she writes Al-Monitor contributor Asmaa al-Ghoul shares her thoughts on journalism. Palestine
Lapid soars in Israel's pre-election polls With the spirit of the 2011 social justice protests still alive, Yesh Atid head Yair Lapid succeeds in overcoming the negative image of his performance as finance minister, and gathers momentum ahead of the elections. Israel
Jordanian jeweler flashes into international spotlight In an interview with Al-Monitor, Jordanian jewelry artist Lama Hourani opens up about her childhood and her path toward designing world-inspired pieces. Jordan
What is Obama's secret weapon against Bibi? It’s hard to understand why President Barack Obama doesn’t translate the criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s congressional speech into action, such as hinting at a change in his position on the Israeli nuclear program. Israel
Florence Massena on why she writes Al-Monitor contributor Florence Massena shares her thoughts on journalism. Lebanon
Maya Gebeily on why she writes Al-Monitor contributor Maya Gebeily shares her thoughts on journalism. Lebanon
Iraqi archaeological sites remain at risk Following a recently released video of Islamic State militants destroying important artifacts at the Ninevah Museum in Mosul, there are fears that the city’s archaeological sites are at risk of destruction. Iraq
