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
Saudi Arabia and the third Gaza war Saudi Arabia has remained quiet during the current Gaza war, working instead through Egypt. Saudi Arabia
Mental health a concern for displaced Iraqis Humanitarian organizations and residents of Babil have been providing material assistance to displaced persons from Kirkuk, but many of the displaced continue to suffer from psychological trauma. Iraq
Will US court’s Argentina verdict impact Turkey? Argentina's recently declared bankruptcy may set a risky precedent for high-debt countries like Turkey. Turkey
Kurdish security chief: Turkey must end support for jihadists The head of the Syrian Kurdish security police forces, Ciwan Ibrahim, tells Al-Monitor that they are willing to cooperate with Turkey if it halts its support for jihadist groups. Iraq
Inside Turkey's wiretapped world A firsthand account of just one of the many wiretapping cases that are happening in Turkey, where government corruption and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's obsession with the Gulen community is the primary cause of a massive abuse of public authority. Turkey
Hamas pressured to accept Egypt’s cease-fire demand The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was announced after heated exchanges between the Egyptian and Hamas delegations during negotiations in Cairo, where Hamas reluctantly accepted Egypt’s demand for a cease-fire without preconditions. Palestine
Detained Post journalist accused of spying in Iran media Conservative Iranian media organizations have accused jailed Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian of spying, a crime punishable by death. Iran
Turkey wakes up to Islamic State threat An inflammatory sermon in Istanbul has made Turkey realize that the Islamic State has become a serious threat to its internal security and stability. Iraq
8 months in, clashes in Anbar continue Houses and shops have been completely destroyed in Anbar as a result of the clashes between the Iraqi army and members of armed factions. Iraq
Erdogan’s presidential rivals fight for airtime Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is accused of employing unfair advantages in his election campaign. Turkey
Israel fears terror spillover from Gaza to West Bank The growing economic crisis in the West Bank coupled with Hamas assaults on Israel and the destruction in Gaza risk provoking more terror attacks in the West Bank. Palestine
Tunisia's president asks US for help Visiting Washington to attend US President Barack Obama’s Africa summit, Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki said that Tunisia “feels the burden” of being the last potential success story from the Arab Spring. Tunisia
