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
Jerusalem Eviction Postponed, Offering a Glimmer of Hope The Shamasneh family, residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem, are facing eviction under Israeli laws that allow Jewish residents to take back property owned prior to 1948. Palestine
Turkey’s Syria Policy: No Easy Answers Turkey’s Syria policies were not wrong, but poorly presented. Syria
Barzani Presses for Referendum On Iraqi Kurdistan Constitution Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani still faces considerable opposition to putting the draft constitution to a referendum. Iraq
Iraq to Simplify Visa Procedures For Foreign Oil Workers The Iraqi government has announced that it will simplify entry-visa and residency-permit procedures for foreign oil workers, following complaints that the current lengthy process deters investors. Iraq
Iran Follows 2012 Election ScriptTo Avoid 2013 Election Surprise The Iranian government in 2012 staged calm parliamentary elections that resulted in victory for loyal supporters of the supreme leader; it hopes to do the same during this year’s presidential vote. Iran
Durrah's Father: My Son Is Dead At the site of Muhammad al-Durrah's grave, his father Jamal recounts his son's final moments, rebuking Israeli claims that he was not killed by Israeli gunfire. Palestine
Is Gulen Movement Against Peace With PKK? The Gulen Movement in Turkey is not against the peace process with the PKK, but is not on its bandwagon either. Turkey
New Palestinian Movement Calls for One-State Solution Frustrated at the lack of progress, Palestinians of various backgrounds have joined to create a movement that explicitly calls for a single democratic state in historic Palestine. Palestine
Iraq Needs a Road Map to End Sectarian Violence Iraq’s religious leaders need to help broker the political compromise that is eluding its political leaders. Iraq
Washington Relaxed About Prospect Of Erdogan Visit to Gaza US President Barack Obama seems confident that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan won’t upset the Turkey-Israel rapprochement. Palestine
Lapid Alienates Israel's Center Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid reveals himself not just as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's economic twin, but also as his political clone. Israel
Former Vice President Slams Iraq's Economic Policy In a statement issued on his personal Facebook page, economist and former Iraqi vice president Adil Abdul-Mahdi has vehemently criticized the country’s economic policy. Iraq
