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
Peace Missing in Israeli Campaign Ads Mazal Mualem reports on the first night of campaign election ads and observes slogans, a sharp right turn and the absence of "peace." Israel
Bank of Israel Governor Calls for Higher Taxes The governor of the Bank of Israel, Stanley Fischer, concerned over a possible fiscal cliff, urges the next government to do the right decision: raise taxes, despite the heavy political price, writes Idan Gribaum. Israel
Saudi Execution of Sri Lankan Maid Exposes Vulnerability of Foreign Workers The execution of a Sri Lankan maid, who was charged as a minor with killing a 4-month-old Saudi baby, has drawn attention to the plight of foreign workers in the kingdom, reports Caryle Murphy. Saudi Arabia
Issawi Crisis Signals More Iraqi Sectarian Violence After Iraqi Finance Minister Rafi al-Issawi’s bodyguard was arrested, sectarian tensions have resurfaced, threatening the Iraqi political scene, writes Ali Abdel Sadah. Iraq
Is Turkey's Foreign Policy Really Sunni? Mustafa Akyol writes that Turkey is pursuing an enlightened regional strategy that is not based upon sectarianism. Turkey
Turkey-Israel Tensions Set Back Turkish Energy Interests Tulin Daloglu writes that Ankara’s poor relations with Israel are hampering its energy interests in the Eastern Mediterranean. Israel
Netanyahu and Israel's Crisis of Democracy Ben Caspit discusses how a recent incident involving Israel's representative to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, reflects an increasingly oppressive atmosphere in Jerusalem, where critics of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to remain silent. Palestine
Lebanon Struggles to Manage Palestinian, Syrian refugees As more Syrians flee to Lebanon, displaced Palestinians from refugee camps in Damascus threaten the fragile political and sectarian balance in the country, writes Nasser Chararah. Lebanon
Armed Palestinian Factions Confident After Battle With Israel Gaza's armed Palestinian factions are confident after the November war with Israel, Mohammed Suliman reports from Gaza. Palestine
Abbas, Meshaal Attempt To Reconcile in Cairo Daoud Kuttab analyzes the prospects for Hamas-Fatah reconciliation in Cairo. Palestine
Hotovely: The New Young Face of the Likud Mazal Mualem interviews Tzipi Hotovely, who represents the new wave of religious right Likud members who believe strongly in Greater Israel. Israel
Iran Top Backer Of Palestinian Islamic Jihad The latest war with Israel revealed the Palestinian Islamic Jihad's improved military capabilities, mostly due to continued Iranian support, Abeer Ayyoub reports from Gaza. Palestine
