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
Israel, Egypt cooperate in efforts to calm Gaza On the backdrop of the crisis in Gaza, Israel considers internal Palestinian reconciliation a security interest and a possible end to arson kite attacks. Palestine
Convoys arrive in Idlib as hundreds of Syrians flee Daraa Humanitarian organizations in the northern Syrian province of Idlib are preparing to host hundreds of displaced citizens coming from Daraa in the south, where they were forced to choose between giving up their weapons and accepting a cease-fire deal or fleeing. Syria
Palestinians decry Israeli visa restrictions on foreign academics Experts fear the quality of university education will go downhill as a result of Israel’s refusal to renew visas for many foreign professors teaching in universities in the West Bank. Palestine
Netanyahu flip-flops on surrogacy rights for gay men The LGBT community is furious with the Israeli prime minister for going back on his promise to support an amendment allowing single men and gay couples to use surrogates in Israel and has called for massive strikes in protest. Israel
Pentagon shifts equipment from Iraq to Syria The Pentagon is removing mine rollers and armored carriers from Iraq as it draws down its presence in the country. Iraq
Pompeo, Haley try to regroup after Helsinki In the wake of Helsinki summit, there are signs of a growing chasm between President Donald Trump and his Cabinet chiefs trying to implement US policies toward the Middle East. Syria
Could Hifter's about-face on control of Libya's oil lead to real progress? Khalifa Hifter’s decision to return control of the oil ports under his authority to the National Oil Corporation, three weeks after seizing them, could be seen as a goodwill gesture that will prompt genuine progress toward an agreement between the two sides. Libya
Kurds discouraged by hard-liners in Turkey's new Cabinet Turkey's new government looks too much like the old one to offer Kurds much hope for a peaceful political resolution. Turkey
Parliament puts price on Egyptian citizenship A controversial bill that would allow foreign nationals to purchase Egyptian citizenship has passed through parliament and awaits the president’s signature. Egypt
Turkey ends state of emergency, but introduces restrictive new rules President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government finally allowed a two-year state of emergency to expire on Thursday, but opposition parties and rights groups say the new measures introduced to replace it are no different. Turkey
Is Turkey’s state of emergency really over? A tough security bill drafted up by Turkey’s ruling party looms as a replacement for the two-year state of emergency that ended July 19. Turkey
Putin envoy tells Iran that cooperation in Syria will continue Iranian and Russian officials have insisted that despite pressure from outside countries, the two countries will continue to support the Syrian government. Israel
