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
Islamic Jihad Movement Maintains Popularity in Gaza While some Palestinian political forces have criticized the Islamic Jihad Movement, it has maintained popularity among the Palestinian public for its strong stances and refusal to work with the occupation forces. Palestine
UN Humanitarian Chief: Syrian Militias Complicate Aid Delivery Valerie Amos, the United Nations’ chief official for humanitarian matters, says only a political solution can alleviate a growing humanitarian catastrophe in and around Syria. Syria
For Erdogan, Troubles In Syria Just Beginning Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US President Barack Obama should devise an effective regional strategy for dealing with the crisis in Syria, wrItes Yavuz Baydar. Syria
Erdogan Says Israeli Strikes On Syria Are 'Unacceptable' Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has broken his silence on the Israeli airstrikes in Syria, declaring them “unacceptable,” writes Tulin Daloglu. Israel
Former Labor Party Minister: 'Israeli Peace Camp Has No Leader' Former Labor Party Minister Moshe Shahal, a strong supporter of the Arab Peace Initiative, tells Mazal Mualem that his former party has forsaken its leadership on peace with the Palestinians. Israel
Turkey-Israel: Toward A 'Cold' Normalization The second round of compensation talks between Israel and Turkey should not raise hopes in Jerusalem of re-establishing the former ties between the two countries, writes Arad Nir. Israel
The Syrian Opposition Also Needs Red Lines UN investigator Carla Del Ponte's disclosure of the possible use of chemical weapons by Syrian rebels should force Turkey to think again about its Syria policy, writes Kadri Gursel. Syria
Kuwaiti Opposition Leader: 'We’re Not Asking to Overthrow Regime' Musallam Al-Barrack, former MP and leader of Kuwait’s opposition, tells Jamie Etheridge that “Kuwait cannot afford to continue being an experiment for the failures of the government.” Kuwait
Iran, Israel Need to Talk About Syria Meir Javedanfar writes that Iran, Hezbollah and Israel share a common and deadly enemy in Jabhat al-Nusra and radical Salafist groups, whose influence is growing. Israel
Erdogan Likely to Press Obama For Arms to Syrian Rebels Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan may find US President Barack Obama more receptive to supporting Syrian rebel forces, writes Semih Idiz. Turkey
Iraq's Sunni-Shiite DivideAbout Governance Iraq needs a political solution that recognizes the grievances of Iraq's Sunni populations and regions, Harith Hasan writes. Iraq
Israeli Flees to Lebanon to Escape ‘Social Suffering’ The Israeli man who jumped the border fence into Lebanon last week did so to escape “his suffering in Israeli society,” writes Nasser Chararah. Israel
