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
Kurdish alliance emerges as key actor in Turkey's upcoming elections Rejected by two major electoral alliances, the Kurds have set up their own alliance with an eye on prizes much further away than Turkey’s snap polls. Turkey
Women ready to run for office in Egypt Egyptian women are being groomed to win elections and become effective leaders once they do. Egypt
West Bank takes charge of electricity, ending Israeli control Under a recent deal reached between the Palestinian Authority and the state-owned Israel Electric Corp., Israel will no longer control electricity distribution to the West Bank. Palestine
Egypt's women move onto soccer field As Egypt prepares to participate in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, more women move to the soccer field, both as referees and fans. Egypt
Gaza's schoolchildren get first taste of interactive learning A publishing company in the West Bank is introducing e-books and interactive learning to primary school students, which despite the power outages has been a success so far. Palestine
Groups help mothers, families of missing Tunisian migrants Organizations in Europe and Tunisia are taking a page from a Central American movement, teaming up to help people whose family members have disappeared or died while seeking a better life in new countries. Tunisia
Putin’s stock rises as 'go-to' mediator between Israel, Iran Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have given Russian president advance notice of attack on Syria; Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan labels United States as loser in decision to withdraw from Iran nuclear deal. Israel
Saudi defense spending soars, but not to America's benefit Saudi Arabia's military spending is not currently benefiting the United States, as no large arms deals are on the table. Saudi Arabia
Eager to vote, Iraq's displaced faced obstacles on election day Promises of jobs and support to rebuild their homes sent many of Iraq's internally displaced in search of voting stations that would allow them to cast their vote on May 12. Iraq
Is Iraqi PM counting on Sunni, Kurdish votes for re-election? Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi appears to be counting on Sunni and Kurdish votes to win the next election, with visits to traditional Kurdish and Sunni strongholds. Iraq
Iranian oil exports set to continue under US sanctions While the US reimposition of sanctions on Iran is not likely to majorly hit Iranian oil exports in the near term, it could have severe consequences for the country’s energy sector in the long term. Iran
Egypt's new law to prevent harassment of tourists gets mixed reaction In an effort to curb aggressive vendors and beggars, Egypt imposed heavy fines on those who harass tourists, but could it work on the ground? Egypt
