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
Libyan Central Bank warns of financial collapse if oil production not restored Libya has lost $180 billion in oil revenues since 2013, according to the Tripoli-based central bank. Libya
Israeli police, ultra-Orthodox clash over coronavirus restrictions Clashes between the ultra-Orthodox and police have intensified over lockdown orders that, among other things, call for the avoidance of public prayers. Israel
Turkey eyes economic gains in backing Azerbaijan against Armenia Turkey and Azerbaijan often describe their relationship as “one nation, two states,” but their economic exchanges have remained relatively small despite their close political and ethnic bonds. Turkey
Egypt discovers ancient coffins in major archaeological find Egypt unveils a major archaeological discovery in the Saqqara necropolis, with 59 coffins dating back more than 2,500 years. Egypt
Corruption continues to threaten Iraq’s stability Despite the prime minister's efforts, corruption remains a big driver of Iraq’s instability. Iraq
Ex-Shin Bet analysts recruited to fight coronavirus within Israeli-Arab society It is difficult to understand why the Israeli authorities are recruiting ex-Shin Bet analysts to participate in an information campaign planned to combat the coronavirus in the Israeli-Arab community. Israel
Al-Azhar coordinates with army to fight drugs in South Sinai South Sinai is marred by the growing phenomenon of drug cultivation and traffic, and while the Egyptian police and army are launching intense security campaigns to remove and burn hundreds of drug farms, the state has turned to Al-Azhar to organize advocacy convoys to South Sinai to persuade the people that Islam prohibits the cultivation, trade and use of drugs. Egypt
Car bombing kills more than a dozen in Syria's al-Bab The town controlled by Turkish-backed Syrian rebel forces continues to experience violence. Syria
Assad accuses Turkey of instigating Nagorno-Karabakh conflict The hostilities have killed hundreds of people since late September. Syria
Intel: Turkey to test Russian S-400 air defense system amid tensions in NATO NATO's secretary-general urged Turkey on Monday to seek alternatives to the Russian system, but Turkey plans to test-fire the S-400 this month. Turkey
Reporter's arrest, abrupt release chills journalists in Egypt A journalist who had gone to Luxor to cover the recent unrest there was arrested on charges that included the spreading of fake news and belonging to a terrorist group. Egypt
Israeli, Emirati diplomats meet in Germany The meeting was the countries' first since signing a normalization agreement last month. United Arab Emirates
