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
Turkish lira slump continues as foreign tensions simmer The Turkish lira continued record losses Tuesday against major currencies as analysts questioned Central Bank independence and Ankara saw political spats deepen with foreign allies. Turkey
Saudi Arabia condemns 'offensive cartoons' as calls grow for French boycott The kingdom "rejects any attempt to link Islam with terrorism," a Foreign Ministry source said. Saudi Arabia
How does Erdogan get away with it all? The United States and European Union’s inertia may allow Turkey to threaten de-escalation efforts in Libya and South Caucasus. Turkey
Iran downplays impacts of new US sanctions on oil industry A set of new US sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector was shrugged off by officials in Tehran, who have been scrambling to keep the lifeline industry up and running in the face of US pressure. United States
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict tests Turkey’s hard power without diplomacy Can Ankara’s “coercive diplomacy” in the south Caucasus yield tangible diplomatic benefits in the long run? Turkey
Child malnutrition soars in parts of Yemen Rampant food insecurity comes as UN-led efforts in Yemen face serious funding shortfalls. Yemen
Iraqi Baath Party announces death of top adviser to Saddam Hussein Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri escaped the 2003 US invasion and led the Naqshbandi Army's insurgency against Baghdad. Iraq
Egypt swoops in Saudi markets amid boycott of Turkish products Egypt is trying to substitute Turkish products with Egyptian products in Saudi Arabia, in an attempt to exploit the popular boycott campaign launched by the Saudis against Turkish products in light of the Turkish-Saudi tensions. Originals
Houthi minister shot dead in Yemeni capital The sports minister for the Iran-backed Houthi administration was assassinated while in his car as the war with the Saudi-backed government rages on. Yemen
Ex-Ninevah governor arrested as Iraqi government reins in corruption The arrest and forced removal of Iraqi government officials signals attempts to curb rampant corruption that has plagued the country. Iraq
No good news for Turkey from jihadi ranks in Syria Ahrar al-Sham, a prominent armed group that has often collaborated with Turkey in Syria, is hit by infighting that plays into the hands of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and dampens Turkish plans to remold rebel factions in Idlib. Turkey
Why Israelis flock to the Emirates The normalization agreement with the Emirates was signed just a few weeks ago, but Israeli businesspeople, athletes and tourists are already flocking there. United Arab Emirates
