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
Ethiopian armed conflict may affect Nile Dam dispute The armed conflict in Ethiopia could affect the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam file and slow down construction of the dam, which Egypt sees as a big threat to its water security. Egypt
Suez Canal reduces fees, will add art for cruise ships Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority has reduced transit fees for cruise ships in a bid to attract more traffic and boost the country’s sagging tourism sector. Egypt
Iraq increases deficit to pay salaries The Iraqi parliament voted on the funding deficit law so that it can borrow to pay salaries that have been in arrears for more than two months. Iraq
Druze, Circassians not seduced by Netanyahu’s budget A ridiculously small budget of 50 million shekels won’t help Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu win over the Druze and the Circassian communities ahead of possible new elections. Israel
Biden victory breathes life back into Israeli-Palestinian cooperation The Palestinian Authority is resuming cooperation with Israel, meaning the Oslo process may finally be back on track. Palestine
Rockets fall in Baghdad after Pentagon announces Iraq troop reduction One child was killed and at least five other people were injured, the Iraqi military said. Iraq
Iran rolls out rapid test, economic relief as virus continues to spread Iran broke its record for daily cases again on Tuesday. New restrictions will soon come into effect in parts of the country. Iran
Chain of teenage suicides shakes impoverished Iranian town Authorities in the southwestern Khuzestan province have imposed a media blackout after the chain of poverty-prompted suicides involving six schoolchildren. Iran
Palestinian Authority to resume cooperation with Israel A senior Palestinian official said Tuesday that the Israeli-Palestinian relationship will "return to how it was." Israel
Trump asked advisers about options to strike Iran nuclear site The outgoing president's inquiry has raised concerns of a last-minute strike that could ignite a messy conflict. Iran
Pompeo skips Ankara, meets with Christian leader in final Turkey visit In his final visit to Turkey as US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo met with the Orthodox Christian spiritual leader in Istanbul Tuesday, forgoing meetings with state officials in a possible message to conservative American voters. Turkey
Qatar calls UAE and Bahrain's normalization with Israel 'sovereign decision' Qatar's foreign minister also stressed a "united front" of Arab states on the Israel-Palestine issue and discussed Qatar's relations with Israel. Originals
