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
Tehran poll: 60% believe media has little or no freedom Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has released the results of a domestic poll of how Tehran residents view television and print media. Iran
Gifted Gaza child artist finds inspiration despite hardship Mohammad Qureiqai, 12, has impressed many with his extraordinary drawings and paintings, and hopes to pursue a career in the fine arts. Palestine
Turkey's countdown to nuclear energy When Turkey’s two planned nuclear power plants become fully operational, the country’s annual bill for energy imports will decrease by an estimated $7.2 billion. Turkey
Millions will boycott Egypt's elections Sisi expects a comfortable win, while a boycott campaign may hurt Sabahi's chances. Egypt
Turkish governor lays out ISIS threat Celalettin Lekesiz, the governor of Hatay province, is now going public with the threats to Turkey from al-Qaeda and ISIS operations in Turkey and on the Turkey-Syria border. Syria
Israeli Arabs, Jews rally to save organic olive grove Jews and Arabs together are battling Israeli authorities to save their fragile organic olive grove from electrical lines planned to pass over their lands to avoid military training zones. Israel
Members of Mubarak's old party plot comeback Members of the disbanded National Democratic Party in Egypt are seeking to run in the upcoming parliamentary elections, despite a court ruling prohibiting their participation. Egypt
Israelis see Iran nuclear breakout possible in 2-3 months According to Israeli security officials, retired Gen. Uzi Eilam's contention that Iran is years away from becoming a nuclear state is inaccurate, an assessment shared by US and European intelligence agencies. Israel
Netanyahu rides nationalist wave In an interview with Al-Monitor Vice President of the Israel Democracy Institute Mordechai Kremnitzer associates the anti-Arab feelings prevailing within the Israeli public and the recent flow of nationalistic bill. Israel
Iraqi MP fined for offering land for votes A video of an Iraqi MP from the State of Law Coalition distributing deeds to plots of land in exchange for votes for the coalition has triggered controversy, and raises broader questions about a rise of political patronage in the country. Iraq
Iraqi political blocs mislead with leaks on election results A number of Iraqi politicians and political blocs have used social media for what they claim are leaked election results from last month’s parliamentary elections. Iraq
Hamas wary of improved Turkey-Israel ties Many within Hamas are quietly disappointed that Islamist ally Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan may be pursuing reconciliation with Israel. Palestine
