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
Rouhani's US-Educated Chief of Staff Knows East and West Hassan Rouhani's chief of staff is a US-educated technocrat who is close to Iran's religious and merchant classes. Iran
Knesset Member: Netanyahu Ready For Agreement With Palestinians Israeli Knesset member Tzachi Hanegbi claims that Israel is ready for concessions with the Palestinians, enabling the government to deal with its real threat, Iran. Israel
Border Clashes Confront Turkey With 'Afghanistan of the Levant' Clashes adjacent to Turkey's border with Syria have the potential of causing a lot of headache for Turkey, not only for their security implications but also for the international image of Turkey and the country's relations with allies, primarily the United States. Syria
Russia Considers Saudi Angle in Syria The visit of Bandar bin Sultan, director-general of Saudi Arabia's intelligence agency, to Moscow last month was all about Syria. Turkey
FC Barcelona Teaches Lesson of Coexistence The legendary FC Barcelona soccer team enthused the West Bank and Israel during its peace tour on Aug. 3-4. Egypt
How Iraqis Assess Egypt's Coup Iraqis who view the Middle East’s developments from a purely sectarian perspective would do well to reconsider that approach as regional events play out. Iraq
Turkey at Post-Kemalist Crossroads Turkey is going through a post-Kemalist transition with problems and habits of the former region still prevailing. Turkey
What to Wear in Tehran: The Evolution of Islamic Chic The once-drab Iranian hijab has blossomed into colorful and figure-hugging styles that satisfy the letter if not the spirit of Islamic law. Turkey
Iraqi Government Suppresses Baghdad Demonstrations The Iraqi government exercises its power to allow and reject popular demonstrations at will. Iraq
Murder, Menace Stalk Istanbul's LGBT Community A transgender woman was recently strangled to death in her house, leading the LGBT community in Istanbul to push harder than ever for hate-crime legislation. Turkey
Egyptian Unrest Rattles Rafah Palestinians Regular clashes between the Egyptian army and militants on Gaza's border are terrifying Palestinian residents in Rafah. Palestine
Retired Israeli Diplomat Warns Of Deteriorating Ties With EU Retired Israeli Ambassador Yaakov Levy has sharply criticized Israel’s policy on Europe, a warning to Jerusalem that it had better examine its actions. Israel
