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
Syrian army's advances near border rattle Ankara If the Syrian regime army captures Aleppo, the Turkish border will come under heavy pressure. Syria
Iran Foreign Ministry criticized for implying 'two-step agreement' The spokeswoman for Iran's Foreign Ministry has been criticized for saying that a political understanding will precede a nuclear agreement. Iran
Who holds the real power in IS? Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi may be caliph of the Islamic State, but he does not rule alone. Iraq
Israel fears rapprochement between US, Iran Some officials in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel fear that the United States aspires to replace its traditional Middle East alliance with a moderate Iran. Israel
Israeli election discourse tests limits of democracy The increasingly harsh public discourse in the current election campaign has Israel’s democracy teetering between freedom of expression and freedom to incite. Israel
Internal unrest threatens Gaza As violence and general lawlessness increase in the Gaza Strip, Fatah and Hamas are accusing each other of being behind the turmoil. Palestine
Ministry strike leaves East Jerusalemites in limbo An open-ended staff strike at the Interior Ministry in Jerusalem has left Palestinian residents unable to access critical documents. Palestine
Egypt acts as middleman for Russia-Libya arms deal Egypt is mediating efforts to supply the Libyan army with Russian weapons to fight the Islamic State, a move that might lead to a end to UN Resolution 1973, which bans the provision of arms to Libya. Egypt
How does Iran make nuclear decisions? While Iran's supreme leader has the final say on Iran's nuclear program, the decision-making process and the various institutions involved are very hard to parse. Iran
Top Iran official warns of climate change The head of Iran's Environmental Protection Organization has spoken out about the impact of global warming and the water crisis in Iran. Iran
Turkish opposition party recruits Obama pollster Keen to unseat the ruling party in the June 7 polls, the Republican People's Party has recruited the Benenson Strategy Group, a US company that crafted President Barack Obama’s campaign. Turkey
Erdogan's 'New Turkey' much like the old The Turkish government’s narrative of a “New Turkey” facing counterrevolutionary “internal enemies” is hardly different from the Kemalist narrative that Turkey’s Islamists resisted for decades. Turkey
