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
Palestinian Islamic Jihad Worried By Possible US-Iran Entente Islamic Jihad is quietly concerned that improved US-Iran relations might result in Tehran rethinking its approach to the Palestinian cause. Palestine
Turkey Should Press Ahead With PKK Process Ankara’s reform package has disappointed the Kurds, but that should not slow the peace process. Turkey
The enigma of Qasem Soleimani and his role in Iraq Al-Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani, profiled in last month's New Yorker, has been among the most influential, and controversial, figures in Iran-Iraq relations. Iraq
Kurdish Groups Take Control In Northeast Syria Kurdish autonomy in north-east Syria will struggle if Syria’s Kurdish forces do not reach an understanding with local Arab residents. Syria
Gulf Cities Emerge As New Centers of Arab World While historic Arab capitals such as Cairo, Baghdad and Damascus are embroiled in civil strife, Gulf cities are powering ahead as new centers for Arab culture, education and business. United Arab Emirates
What Does the Brotherhood Want? As the majority of Egyptians suffer through the slumping economy, the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood continues demonstrating for the reinstatement of deposed president Mohammed Morsi. Egypt
New Fast-Food Chicken Franchise Opens in Algeria Chicken Cottage, a popular British competitor to the US' KFC chain, is a stark contrast to most similarly priced restaurants in Algiers. Culture & Society
Egypt: Neither Coup Nor Revolution The recent clashes in Egypt suggest the country still has not realized the potential of its revolution. Egypt
Anger, Confusion Cloud Iran's Adoption-Marriage Bill While Iran's parliament sought to make marriage illegal between parent and adoptive child, the powerful Guardian Council intervened, drawing unwanted attention to an unusual case. Iran
Assad Warns Erdogan On Turkey’s Syria Policy Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s latest interview reveals again the deep personal enmity between him and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Syria
Erdogan Should Back Geneva II Conference on Syria Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan could benefit Turkey by supporting the Geneva conference, not clinging to failing regime-change policies. Syria
