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
Turkish Central Bank fails to combat inflation The governor of Turkey's Central Bank has done well in financial stability, but time is running out for him to control inflation. Turkey
4 arrested in acid attacks on Iranian women Four individuals have been arrested in connection with the recent acid attacks on women in Esfahan, Iran. Iran
IS threat unlikely to help US, Russia bridge divide A common fear of the Islamic State does not appear to be enough for the United States and Russia to resolve their differences over Ukraine and other issues, despite positive signs from a meeting between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Paris. Iraq
Who will Turkey 'train and equip' in Syria? Turkey reportedly to train mostly Turkmen force, primarily to oppose Bashar al-Assad, not Islamic State; Al-Monitor Syria Pulse correspondents report on fighting in Aleppo and Daraa; Why did Assad dismiss his top security official? Syria
Mideast conflict needs Scandinavian drive Scandinavian experience at peacemaking and human rights could again prove useful at jump-starting the deadlocked Israel-Palestine negotiations. Palestine
UN vote confirms Turkey's waning influence Ankara’s failure to win a seat on the UN Security Council adds grist to the mill of those who argue that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu have left Turkey with few friends in the world. Turkey
Rabin's son says Israelis ready for regional agreement In an interview with Al-Monitor shortly before the commemoration of Yitzhak Rabin's assassination, his son Yuval Rabin called for a regional agreement. Israel
Israel eases restrictions on Gaza Israel has started to provide facilities to the Gaza Strip, but many Palestinians see these efforts as a facade that changes little. Palestine
Beyonce in Baghdad When Beyonce sang "I Was Here" at the the UN General Assembly on World Humanitarian Day in 2012, it inspired a volunteer campaign in Baghdad by the same title. Iraq
Beirut's archaeological heritage threatened by construction The new construction sites in Beirut are built without taking into consideration the archaeological heritage of the capital. Lebanon
Corruption plagues Iraqi TV, film industry The poor production quality of the Iraqi entertainment industry is the direct result of mismanagement made intractable by rampant corruption. Iraq
Donor pledges not enough to rehabilitate Gaza The Palestinian Authority needs at least $15 billion to properly restore Gaza’s economy, while donors have only pledged $5.4 billion for interim reconstruction. Palestine
