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
Iraq's Christians, Muslims agree to revive site of ancient church A lunch meeting between a Christian tour group and local Muslims during Ramadan resulted in an initiative to save one of Iraq’s oldest churches. Iraq
Manbij plan raises expectations but not mood in US-Turkey relations Just days after Ankara and Washington announced their agreement on a road map for Manbij, Syria, differing interpretations are threatening setbacks in their fragile progress toward rebuilding ties. Syria
Iraq to tackle vast vote recount amid claims of extensive fraud As the Iraqi Cabinet and parliament investigate allegations of widespread fraud in the recent election, the winning parties await the potential fallout, worried about losing parliament seats. Iraq
Iran ups pressure on other countries to keep nuclear deal alive Iran’s foreign minister penned a letter to his counterparts around the world to call for a united stance against US unilateralism. United States
Turkish exports to Syria revived under shadow of war Turkey remains Syria's leading supplier of goods despite the ongoing war, with exports standing at some $1.4 billion last year. Syria
How a Turkish general's smile is now a key election issue Turkey's opposition parties are harshly criticizing the presence of military officers at election campaign events in support of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey
Knesset blocks bill to deem Israel 'state for all its citizens' Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein rejected this week a law proposal presented by the Arab Joint List redefining Israel as the state of all its citizens. Palestine
Why US recognition of Golan Heights annexation would hurt Israel The US-backed campaign for recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights could become a real obstacle on the way to peace with Syria. Palestine
Syrians making trek home from Turkey for holiday Syrian refugees in Turkey are returning home by the thousands for Eid al-Fitr, with border crossing administrators providing the needed facilities. Syria
How Iran's Telegram ban will kill jobs The move by the Iranian authorities to ban Telegram impacts not just access to information but also top political priorities such as job creation. Iran
PA worried by potential Hamas-Israel truce The Palestinian Authority fears the proposed long-term truce between Hamas and Israel under the pretext of the humanitarian crisis would lead to separating the Gaza Strip from the West Bank, and then to passing "the deal of the century." Palestine
Israeli association aims to teach children tolerance through dolls Armed with dolls, a small Israeli organization aims to make Israel’s increasingly diverse society more tolerant by educating children. Israel
