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
Will separation wall be new Israel-Palestine border? Recent developments in the Palestinian village of al-Ram might indicate a long-term plan to demarcate a future border along the separation wall. Palestine
Iraq's religious minorities and Shiite mourning holidays Mandeans and Christians in Iraq adjust to and sometimes join the commemorations of the death of Hussein bin Ali during the lengthy Shiite mourning period. Iraq
Congressman Ted Poe: US-Israeli ties 'very tenuous at best' In an interview with Al-Monitor, Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he hopes "that the United States would mend its relationship with Israel." Israel
Crisis in Lebanon requires urgent action The Nov. 19 bombing of the Iranian Embassy in Beirut underscores Lebanon's need for a cabinet. Lebanon
Turkey’s draft constitution appears dead The deadlock in the Turkish parliament does not come as a surprise and may foreshadow even more polarization. Turkey
Who decides how to rank Arab women? A recent report by Thomson Reuters ranking Arab women is laden with Western cultural stereotypes of Arabs. Egypt
Erdogan rules out general amnesty for PKK Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan denied that he implied he was considering a general amnesty when he said in Diyarbakir that the prisons be should emptied. Turkey
Syria’s criminal gangs As the war drags on and atrocities on all sides continue, criminal and terrorist groups have played a larger role in those forces opposed to the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Syria
Erdogan-Barzani 'Diyarbakir encounter' milestone Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for the first time ever, says "Kurdistan." Iraq
Can Sarigul, the hope of Turkey's left, unseat Erdogan? Some leftist commentators see Mustafa Sarigul as the best hope for the Turkish left, while others believe he is a mere 'hostage' in Erdogan's hands due to corruption allegations. Turkey
Egypt and Israel spar over Gaza as Sinai crisis escalates Egypt-Hamas ties have plummeted while Israel seeks to keep a lid on Gaza. Palestine
Israeli public closes ranks with Netanyahu on Iran Israeli media fails to inform the public on the alternative interpretation of the Iran nuke deal. Israel
