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
Can Russia benefit from Turkey-Greece spat? In light of the conflict in the eastern Mediterranean between Turkey and Greece, Russia may be looking to strengthen its ties with Greece in order to further its interests in the region. Russia
No more UN embargo on Iran, but no arms sales either Anyone who might seek to sell arms to Iran is likely in a holding pattern to see what happens in the US election and to see what Iran, in dire economic straits, can afford. United States
US won’t change Syria policy to free missing Americans, Pompeo says Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was asked if the Trump administration would consider meeting the Syrian regime's terms, which reportedly include withdrawing all American forces from the country. Syria
Hundreds of European Union lawmakers demand Egypt’s Sisi release political prisoners The letter follows a similar one addressed to Sisi by 56 members of the US Congress on Monday. Egypt
Trial in Turkey over death of prominent Kurdish lawyer postponed Court proceedings over the 2015 killing of human rights lawyer Tahir Elci were postponed Oct. 21 until March 2021 after defense attorneys requested the recusal of the trial’s judge panel. Turkey
The Takeaway: Would US-Turkey ties get better or worse if Biden wins? Trump may be Erdogan’s best friend in Washington; Four takes on Iraq, including the increased violence by Iran-linked militias; and Israeli official talks normalization with Ben Caspit Turkey
Citing rights abuses, House Democrats push administration to snub Saudi-hosted G-20 summit Lawmakers said the US government has an obligation to ensure such gatherings are not used to distract from ongoing human rights violations. Saudi Arabia
Intel: UN Libya envoy ‘very optimistic’ about cease-fire as civilian travel set to reopen Acting UN Libya envoy Stephanie Williams said Wednesday the two sides agreed to cooperate on restructuring the forces that guard petroleum fields. Libya
Knesset speaker disqualifies vote to probe Netanyahu in submarine affair Israel’s opposition lawmakers are furious over Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein's decision to nullify a vote to probe the prime minister in the notorious submarine affair. Israel
Fight Island in Abu Dhabi concludes Saturday with main event featuring Khabib Nurmagomedov The undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov will face American Justin Gaethje in an isolated section of Abu Dhabi's Yas Island, which was set up to host the major mixed martial arts event. Originals
Massive war games light up Iran's skies Leaders of Iran’s armed forces said they were testing air defense preparedness in a large-scale exercise involving half of the country’s airspace. Iran
'Mr. Security' Netanyahu discovers: security last thing on Israelis’ minds Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now discovering that with the raging pandemic and economic crisis, security is the last thing on Israelis’ minds. Israel
