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
Iran, US try volleyball diplomacy Iran’s national volleyball team gets a warm reception in “Tehrangeles” in another first for US-Iran relations. Iran
Who's responsible for what happened in Gaza? Israel’s policy of strangling the Gaza Strip while ignoring Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is what strengthened Hamas; thus, any agreement that will be reached in Cairo will be viewed by the Israeli public as surrendering to terror, even if its terms appear in previous agreements signed by Israel. Palestine
'Dirty deal' finances settlements, instead of Israel's south In an interview with Al-Monitor, Knesset member Stav Shafir blames coalition members in the concocting of a ''dirty deal'' where money will go to settlements instead of the southern localities. Israel
Egypt protests As millions of Egyptian protesters celebrated as the Egyptian army's deadline passed for Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi to respond to protesters' demands, a top foreign policy advisor to Morsi, warned that what is happening in Egypt is a military coup. Egypt
Israel's US envoy Michael Oren to step down Israel's ambassador to the United States Michael Oren will step down in the fall after four years in the post; he may be replaced by Ron Dermer Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's political advisor. Israel
Iran’s oil minister accuses former officials of $2.7 billion oil fraud Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh has claimed that former ministers under Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration cooperated with billionaire Babak Zanjani to steal $2.7 billion in government money. Iran
Ex envoys Wisner, Kurtzer: What the US should do now in Egypt former Egypt Daniel Kurtzer and former US diplomat Frank Wisner have said that the US did not recognize that Mohammed Morsi did not respect democratic institutions. Egypt
Jihadists coordinate on Tunisian-Algerian border Tunisia and Algeria are coordinating to confront the terror threat emanating along their border, as jihadists gain strength from the Libyan crisis. Algeria
Austerity measures won't save Egyptian economy Although Egyptian officials contend that recent austerity measures are designed to protect the poor in the long term, the immediate burden will fall on low-income households. Egypt
Lebanon a safe haven but Middle Eastern Christians still at risk The arrival of Iraqi Christians in Lebanon is significant, as the country has historically been considered a safe haven for Christians in the Levant, and requires considerable diplomatic support from religious and political authorities in the region. Iraq
P5+1 hopes new Iran nuclear team responds to Almaty offer Political directors will meet in Brussels on July 16 in anticipation of resuming nuclear talks upon the election of new Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. These leaders hope the new Iran nuclear team will respond substantively to a confidence building proposal presented to Iran in Almaty, Kazakhstan in February. Iran
Barrel bombs pummel Anbar Analysts say the Iraqi government is pursuing a scorched-earth policy, using barrel bombs to regain control of cities it lost to terrorist organizations. Iraq
