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
Sisi surrounds himself with generals in latest Cabinet reshuffle The Egyptian government has seen a major Cabinet reshuffle, with most of the newly appointed ministers coming from a military background. Egypt
Can pay raises placate Egyptians amid fuel, electricity price hikes? The Egyptian government has announced an increase in pay and pensions for civil servants before it lifts subsidies on electricity and fuel. Egypt
Why Israelis root for Iran, Morocco in World Cup With no team of its own competing in the World Cup, Israelis are supporting others from the Middle East regardless of political differences. Israel
Israel's simple path to solving draft crisis By slightly changing an existing law, Israel could resolve its ongoing ultra-Orthodox conscription crisis and bring equality to the system. Israel
Congress wants Trump to resume aid to Syria While Congress seeks to ensure that President Donald Trump resumes Syria stabilization aid, they also want to keep it out of the hands of Bashar al-Assad. Syria
Film about Egyptian superstar a hit everywhere but Egypt In Europe, Iranian director Shirin Neshat’s "Looking for Oum Kulthum" is seen as a landmark artistic collaboration across the Middle East, but Egyptian critics are unimpressed with its historical inaccuracies. Egypt
Shocking price jump in Turkish onions makes voters' eyes water The price of onions, the quintessential Turkish staple, has shot up days before Turkey's parliamentary and presidential elections, sparking outrage that may benefit the opposition and feeding conspiracy theories left and right. Turkey
Iranian women win big in fight over right to watch soccer games Iranian women were allowed into Azadi stadium to watch a soccer game alongside men for the first time since the 1979 revolution. Iran
Turkey tries to legitimize incursion in northern Iraq As Turkey advances inside Iraqi territory to eliminate members of the Kurdistan Workers Party, Baghdad has openly rejected the action, though the Kurdistan Regional Government remains curiously silent. Iraq
Meet the mysterious social media team behind Turkey's opposition candidate Turkey's most popular opposition candidate, Muharrem Ince, owes a good part of his success so far to his mysterious social media team, which granted Al-Monitor an interview. Turkey
What's behind Erdogan’s promise of free coffeehouses? The Turkish president’s election pledge for free coffeehouses has earned him much ridicule ahead of the June 24 polls, but some warn the project is no laughing matter. Turkey
Turkey invests in education in northern Syria Turkey's Harran University is scheduled to open a new campus in Syria, in the Euphrates Shield area, after signing an agreement with al-Bab's local council. Syria
