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
Russia's turnaround in the Middle East Russian foreign policy in the region has benefited from a steady, nonideological focus as well as the missteps and neglect of other powers. Syria
Turkey's Syria dilemma The deepening crisis in Syria should make Turkey consider how it will deal with near permanent chaos in its borders. Syria
Egyptian activists protest military trials in new draft constitution The approval of an amendment by a constitutional committee allowing military trials for civilians is considered a setback by democracy activists. Egypt
Israel's Labor Party wants power Isaac Herzog won the battle for Labor Party chairman because he represents the opposite image and a more flexible agenda than that of outgoing Labor Chairwoman Shelly Yachimovich. Israel
Can Isaac Herzog rebuild Israeli left camp? Incumbent Labor Party Chairman Isaac Herzog does not intend to rush into Netanyahu's government, striving first to reconstruct the Israeli center-left camp. Israel
Sadr blends religion, populism in Iraqi politics The populist Shiite Sadrist Movement demonstrates its leader’s ability to bring a new dynamic to the political scene in Iraq, which is too often marked by polarization and extremism. Iraq
Israeli police battle ties between rabbis, organized crime Israeli police arrested Israeli Rabbi Yoram Abergel for involvement in an extortion deal, unraveling a dangerous triangle of rabbis, criminals and local politics in Netivot. Israel
The next frontier in US-Iran relations: Reducing Iran-Israel tensions As the US brokered the normalization of ties between Egypt and Israel, the same could happen in Iran-Israel ties. Israel
Jews from Arab countries: the forgotten refugees A UN conference addresses the status of Jews from Arab states who were expelled from their homeland after the creation of the state of Israel. Palestine
Correcting misconceptions of the Gulf’s modern art movement Contrary to what some may believe, a vibrant indigenous visual arts tradition does exist in the Gulf. United Arab Emirates
Turkey, Iran influence Iraqi Kurdistan politics The post-election politics of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq is subject to relationships among Iran, Iraq and Turkey. Iraq
Egypt’s students fuel anti-government protests In the wake of the June 30 ouster of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, student movements have once again reasserted their role as a driving force behind anti-government protests. Egypt
