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
Rep. Tlaib accused of anti-Semitism for comments on Biden pick The Michigan congresswoman said she hopes Joe Biden's nominee for secretary of state will not go after boycotts of Israel. Israel
Women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul to stand trial in Saudi Arabia Loujain al-Hathloul will appear in a Saudi court Wednesday more than two years after she was first detained in a crackdown on human rights defenders. Saudi Arabia
Family appeals conviction in Lockerbie bombing in Scottish court A lawyer for the family of the late Libyan intelligence officer Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, convicted in the 1988 plane bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, argues there was insufficient evidence to convict him. Libya
Talks ‘got us nowhere’: Iran’s supreme leader casts doubt on future negotiations Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's comments come as the Trump administration ramps up its maximum pressure campaign on Iran. Iran
Iran taps into emergency fund to compensate Ukraine flight victims The Islamic Republic is to pay families of the victims of the Ukrainian flight it downed earlier this year. But the payment has been secured not from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps responsible for the missile attack but from an emergency fund meant for the public interest. Iran
COVID-19 breaks records in Turkey as health experts call for tighter controls New daily COVID-19 rates hit record highs four days in a row in Turkey, prompting local health officials to call for more stringent social distancing measures. Turkey
Saudi Arabia will make coronavirus vaccines free to residents The kingdom hopes to vaccinate up to 70% of its population by the end of 2021. Saudi Arabia
Israel's Netanyahu planning to visit Bahrain 'soon' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement followed his phone call with Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa on Tuesday. Bahrain
Gantz slams Netanyahu for 'chaos' in Israeli political crisis The decision by Defense Minister Benny Gantz to open an inquiry into the submarine affair, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu excluding Gantz on the trip to Saudi Arabia, brings the political crisis to an unprecedented point. Israel
Israel, Gulf rapprochement could worry Yemen, Iran Israel is concerned over growing Iranian entrenchment in Yemen, not unlike the way Iran operates in Syria. Legacy: Gulf
Iran to pursue legal action against US over medical sanctions Tehran has struggled to contain the spread of the disease and accused Washington of cutting off access to a life support system. Iran
Humanitarian disaster looms over Syria’s Idlib amid COVID-19 surge The coronavirus continues to spread in the opposition-controlled areas of Syria, with daily counts ranging between 300 and 500, and health workers say a health catastrophe is imminent. Syria
