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
Hezbollah sends Israel message in Shebaa bombing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has claimed responsibility for the Shebaa Farms bombing that wounded Israeli soldiers, and Israel has filed a complaint at the United Nations, signaling that Israel understood the message. Palestine
Fatah, Hamas battle for control of mosques Fatah is tightly controlling mosques in the West Bank, claiming to shield them from political interference, but its adversaries accuse it of using mosques for its own political purposes. Palestine
Lebanon's presidential stalemate The deadlock in the politicking over Lebanon's next president has a familiar feel. Lebanon
Hakim-led Citizen Coalition could shake up Iraqi elections New coalitions of moderate religious and secular origins could bode well for Iraqi politics and shake up the April 30 elections. Iraq
Get ready for the next Erdogan decade It seems that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's game plan is to rule Turkey in a very centralized and personalized presidential system at least until 2024. Turkey
Turkey's first Communist mayor offers 'another left' A small town in Turkey has become the first municipality to elect a Communist mayor. Turkey
Senior Hamas leader discusses Iran, Syria, Palestinian politics Senior Hamas figure Mahmoud al-Zahar tells Al-Monitor’s Palestine Pulse that Hamas is "ready at any moment" to resume reconciliation talks with Fatah. Palestine
Turkey's atheists get organized Turkey’s Association of Atheists faces negative public perceptions, but is a sign of a trend in Turkish civil society of groups seeking recognition and rights. Turkey
Abbas proposes discussing borders of future state The Palestinian formula for the resumption of talks with Israel includes discussion of borders issue, which is not only the aim of negotiations but also the only way to sell renewed talks to the Palestinian public. Palestine
Parliament to defer election of Lebanon’s next president The Lebanese electoral session will be a “feeler” to determine the sizes of the various forces. Lebanon
Syrian government to intensify offensive before election After its victory in Yabrud, the Syrian regime may try to retake Aleppo, strengthening its position ahead of presidential elections scheduled for early June. Syria
Aleppo's children struggle to stay in school A first-hand report from Aleppo on local initiatives in rebel-held east Aleppo trying to keep children in school. Syria
