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
Can Netanyahu get indicted and then re-elected? Police recommend assembling the different cases involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into one indictment. Israel
Israeli Labor mulls split as polls predict crushing loss Despite the dismal polls, no Knesset member in the Labor Party is willing to confront unpopular leader Avi Gabbay. Israel
Can this Egyptian actor's photo in bed with another man send him to prison? Egyptian actor Khaled Abol Naga posted an artistic photo of himself in bed with another man, and he may now face a ban from the Cinematic Syndicate and time in prison. Egypt
Egypt reaps harvest of Sisi’s visit to China Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi returned a few days ago from a visit to China during which he participated in the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in what raised questions about the gains that Egypt will achieve from the visit. Egypt
Trump touts Mideast moves as Washington reels from 'Crazytown' accounts As accounts emerge of White House aides' internal resistance to some of Trump's controversial policy decisions, the president boasts of his decision to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem, cut off Palestinian aid and pull the plug on the Iran nuclear deal. Palestine
Trump shelves Gulf talks until next year The White House has once again postponed a Gulf Cooperation Council summit aimed at bringing together the fragmented alliance to counter Iran. Saudi Arabia
Russia, Turkey size up challenges and opportunities in Idlib In the run-up to the presidential summit in Tehran, Russia and Turkey continue to weigh their options for Idlib. Syria
Can Israeli women challenge Chief Rabbinate? Israelis, including many from the national-religious stream, support women who study Jewish law and make Jewish-law decisions. Israel
Turkey snatches 'Gulenist' teachers in Moldova Today's reported abduction and deportation of at least six Turkish nationals in Moldova comes as Ankara's latest move against suspected Gulenists in countries where there is weak rule of law. Turkey
Tehran summit to end Syrian war, says Iran media The summit taking place in Iran between Russia, Turkey and Iran on Friday can lead to the end of the Syrian civil war. Syria
Can Iran threaten US interests from Iraqi territories? Iran has established a strong military foundation among its allies in Iraq, which allows it to threaten the United States and its allies everywhere in Iraq and neighboring countries. Saudi Arabia
Turkey pins hopes on cleric Sadr to form Iraqi government As Turkey waits to see which Iraqi political coalition comes up with the parliamentary majority necessary to install a new government, Ankara is rooting for the bloc of cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, which it sees as most likely to minimize US and Iranian influence in the country. Iraq
