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
IS sent warning letters to Middle East embassies Iran's deputy foreign minister has said that the Islamic State sent letters to embassies warning them not to attack the group and that the United States notified Iran and Syria that its coalition would not target Syrian bases. Iraq
Israeli defense minister warns of 'bad Iranian deal' Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon warns of Iranian aspirations for regional hegemony, claiming that the West did not present tough enough negotiation stances: ''Current discussions would result in an agreement that isn’t a good one.'' Israel
Former Israeli defense minister says conflict looms with Hamas In an interview with Al-Monitor, former Defense Minister Moshe Arens contends that Israeli politicians depict a false picture of deteriorating Israeli-US ties, especially in regard to Congress, saying that ''relations are very stable." Palestine
Can Israel, Palestine exist as parallel states on same land? Contrary to what politicians on both sides are willing to admit, the Israeli and Palestinian people can live together side by side, and might accept an idea of having two parallel, “overlapping” states established on the same land. Palestine
Turkey’s first 'gay marriage' Two young men who exchanged marriage vows found that Turkey remains a long way from accepting same-sex marriage. Turkey
John Kerry: Iran deal not 'out of reach' Speaking ahead of a trilateral meeting in Vienna, US Secretary of State John Kerry expressed hope for the nuclear deal. Iran
Hamas plays down Cabinet meeting in Gaza The Palestinian national unity government held its first Cabinet meeting in Gaza last week, but Hamas is still cautious about allowing the new government to expand its presence in Gaza. Palestine
How to defeat Islamic State's war machine The Islamic State has to be recognized as a lethal and effective war machine at the tactical level. Iraq
Rebels in Aleppo stretched thin between regime, IS Rebel supply lines to the city of Aleppo are at risk of being cut as the rebels simultaneously fight government forces and the Islamic State in Aleppo’s northern countryside. Syria
Zarif says 'many issues' remain as nuclear talks resume Despite the president's proclaimed optimism, Iran's foreign minister has said that many issues still remain in the nuclear talks, which resume today. Iran
Netanyahu prefers right-wing electorate to new Middle East While preparing early primaries for the Likud Party, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prefers strengthening his right-wing leader image to seizing a historic opportunity to promote a changed regional order in the Middle East. Palestine
Hamas, IS share neither goal nor methods Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that Hamas and the Islamic State are fruits of the same tree, but there are significant ideological and methodological differences between the two groups. Palestine
