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
Nepotism flourishes under AKP Turkey’s main opposition party has revealed a list of government workers who got public jobs through corrupt channels and created a website for citizens to report other cases. Turkey
Iran conference panelists criticize nuclear program Panelists at a conference about Iran's nuclear program have spoken out publicly about its steep costs to the country. Iran
Hamas asks Iran for money, weapons A senior Hamas delegation visited Tehran last week to ask Iran to resume its financial and military aid to the beleaguered Palestinian Islamist movement. Palestine
Who keeps bombing French Cultural Center in Gaza? The French Cultural Center in Gaza has been targeted twice in two months, raising suspicions about who is behind the attacks, since the center is located near Hamas security headquarters and the unity government's Interior Ministry. Palestine
Qom, Najaf call for improved relations with Saudi Arabia Prominent religious authorities in both Qom and Najaf have called on political leaders in their countries to improve their relations with Saudi Arabia after the latter took a strict stance against Salafist jihadism. Saudi Arabia
Expanding defense budgets feed fears of Middle East arms race A new report on arms-producing companies offers insight into the Middle East, where military experts say the armament race is likely to continue at an increasing pace. Pan Arab
How foreign imams radicalized Syria's war When eastern Aleppo fell to rebel factions, radical preachers from abroad quickly moved in and began proselytizing extremist views to the local population, raising fears that such effects may linger for years to come. Syria
Hamas official confirms Qassam rocket tests Hamas' testing of Qassam rockets points to the movement's failure to draw the right conclusions or lessons from its last confrontation with Israel. Palestine
After Damascus talks, Moscow pressures Syria Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov’s Dec. 10-11 visit to Damascus and increased contact with Turkey signal a shift in Russian-Syrian relations as Moscow looks for a political solution. Lebanon
Netanyahu plays on US partisan politics The Palestinians should suggest a diplomatic initiative that is hard to refuse, instead of a one-sided Palestinian overture to the UN, just as the Republicans and Democrats should show unity condemning the Israeli occupation so that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could not play on this seeming divide. Palestine
IRGC responds to Rouhani's comments Following the president's warning against the consolidation of power, the head of the IRGC has criticized interpretations of strife between the president and his organization, which he credits with maintaining Iran's opposition to the United States. Iran
Loopholes, gaps riddle Taif Agreement The agreement that ended the Lebanese civil war still hasn't been implemented and remains as controversial as when it was penned. Lebanon
