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
Gazans seem to consider Hamas lesser of two evils Despite attempts by Israel to turn Gazans against Hamas, they appear unwilling to opt for another party or authority to control the Gaza Strip. Palestine
How Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rival operates in northern Syria Al-Monitor interviewed the spokesman of the National Liberation Front, which includes several armed opposition factions in northern Idlib, to find out its goals and plans for the future. Syria
Loans help Palestinian grads break into business world Unemployed college graduates can now benefit from a government loan program designed to integrate them into the labor market and boost the ailing Palestinian economy. Palestine
West Bank attack leaves Israeli security scrambling The bewildering lone wolf attack at the West Bank Barkan Industrial Zone defied the pattern of terrorist behavior that Israel’s security forces have come to expect. Palestine
Israel's largest Bedouin community fights to keep swimming pool segregated The first and only swimming pool in the Bedouin town of Rahat is struggling to balance Israeli equality laws with the community's preference for gender-separated swimming. Israel
Is Russia’s S-300 delivery to Syria a game-changer? Russia's deployment of S-300 missile defense systems to Syria has both political and military significance, but might not necessarily change the overall balance of forces with regard to Israel. Israel
What Nikki Haley’s exit may mean for the Middle East Whoever succeeds Nikki Haley as Donald Trump’s envoy to the UN is unlikely to have the long leash and big platform that she held, especially in the first year, before John Bolton and Mike Pompeo came in. Palestine
Turkish authorities to search Saudi consulate for missing journalist As the Turkish authorities prepare to search the Saudi consulate where a dissident Saudi journalist disappeared last week, the Turkish opposition is curiously silent about the matter despite the ruling party's harsh treatment of the country's own press. Saudi Arabia
Iran summons pundit, soccer icon over quake relief donations Iran's judiciary has frozen accounts belonging to a prominent political commentator and a soccer icon who have been raising donations for a quake-stricken town in the country's west. Iran
Outgoing Abadi signs blow to Turkish exports Turkey sees trouble in the new internal customs checkpoints the federal government has established in northern Iraq. Turkey
