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
EU divided over efforts to appease Trump on Iran deal Trump’s push for increased European pressure on Iran over its regional policies and missile program has caused divisions within the European Union, ultimately limiting the efforts of the E3. Iran
Egypt's lawmakers consider merging small parties The idea of merging small political parties is a subject of debate between two camps in Egypt: One thinks it would lead to real competition, while the other believes it would stifle public participation. Egypt
Egyptian artists outside Cairo struggle for spotlight The #Art_Has_No_Place campaign intends to break the monopoly of Cairo as Egypt's cultural capital. Egypt
Ramallah festival takes dancing to the streets The latest edition of the Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival gained international recognition through the participation of international dance troupes. Palestine
Congress nudges Trump toward Gulf missile defense Congress is trying to revive US-led talks for a GCC-wide missile shield against Iran that have stalled amid tensions with Qatar. Legacy: Gulf
Secular candidate hopes to push Erdogan into Turkish presidential runoff While some Turks see Erdogan as vulnerable, others only have hopes that his party can be denied a parliamentary majority. Turkey
Turkey woos Iraqi provincial leaders to rekindle relations Ankara hopes its diplomatic efforts in the Shiite-dominated southern provinces of Iraq will improve Turkey's political standing with Baghdad. Iraq
Why Europe could end up being blamed for nuclear deal collapse Britain, France and Germany’s outreach to Trump has increasingly put them in a position where they will likely be blamed by all sides in case the nuclear deal collapses. United States
Rouhani suggests Europe can keep Iran nuclear deal alive President Hassan Rouhani’s speech suggested that as long as Iran’s goals within the nuclear deal could be met, they would remain in the nuclear deal despite a US exit. Iran
Iraq's top Shiite cleric denounces militias' electoral list The electoral coalition of the Popular Mobilization Units has come under criticism from Iraqi's highest Shiite religious leader for invoking the group's military victories for electoral gain. Iraq
Netanyahu’s Iran revelations spark furor in Israel Some prominent figures in the Israeli security community believe that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was motivated by politics in revealing the Mossad operation to retrieve Iranian nuclear program materials and view his public acknowledgment as a major mistake. Israel
Egyptian women fight for right to top judicial positions As both the Ministry of Justice and the National Council for Women push for the appointment of female judges to Egypt’s State Council, the State Council continues to adamantly reject such appointments. Egypt
