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
Russia gives Turkey one last month for solution in Syria Ankara has won some breathing room in Syria, having one month to persuade radical forces to give up their guns, leave Idlib, join a Turkish-backed rebel alliance or face a crushing assault by the Syrian regime supported by Russian forces. Syria
Nidaa Tunis’ power struggle gets new twist The resignation of eight Nidaa Tunis parliament members fans the flames of the escalating row between the son of President Beji Caid Essebsi, Hafedh Caid Essebsi, who is also Nidaa Tunis’ executive director, and Prime Minister Youssef Chahed after Essebsi suspended the latter’s membership in the party. Tunisia
Turkey chides US for failing to honor Manbij accord Ankara is caught between two superpowers that are pursuing their own agendas in Syria, while its efforts to implement its own agenda there only seem to be growing more difficult with time. Originals
PMU steps up role in Iraq's security after Basra rioting Following violent protests in Basra in which PMU offices were set on fire, the PMU now plans to carry out security tasks in southern Iraq, which will expand its influence there. Iraq
Upper Egypt villagers don't exist on paper Many Upper Egyptian villagers are invisible to the government after generations of births and marriages without official paperwork, leaving them uncounted and without services. Egypt
Villages overwhelmed as Idlib's displaced head for Turkish border Thousands of civilians are fleeing their homes in Idlib as the Syrian regime, backed by Russia, bombs the area ahead of a ground offensive. Syria
Israel’s two judicial systems Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman suspended the appointment of an IDF advisory committee for examining parole requests by Palestinian convicted assailants. Palestine
The Paul Manafort affair: the Israeli connection Israeli politicians are demanding investigations into which 'senior Israeli official' appears to have close ties to the Kremlin and was apparently involved in an effort by the former American lobbyist Paul Manafort to smear a Ukrainian politician as anti-Semitic. Israel
Iran 1, US 0: Iraq chooses a parliament speaker After a long delay, the Iraqi parliament has finally elected its speaker and in doing so confirmed the rising influence of Iran. Iraq
What Putin-Erdogan deal means for Idlib Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hammered out a deal on "demilitarizing" Idlib that both parties seem to be content with — yet serious political and military challenges persist. Syria
Turkey, Russia agree to buffer zone in Syria’s Idlib Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan said they will create a demilitarized zone to separate rebels from Syrian forces in what Turkey believes will prevent an attack on the opposition stronghold. Syria
Iranians respond to MEK troll farm: #YouAreBots The exiled Iranian opposition group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq is allegedly pumping out tweets in support of overthrowing the Islamic Republic and amplifying them with bots, while legitimate Iranian accounts are suspended. United States
