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
Militias keep up attacks, hit US base in Kurdistan Region Rocket attacks continued in Iraq, as Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi seeks to rein in armed factions following the US government's threat to close its embassy in Iraq. Iraq
Turkish prosecutors issue second indictment against suspected Khashoggi killers Six Saudi nationals join a growing list of accused as Turkey's trial takes on an international dimension. Turkey
New Iraqi committee to build nuclear reactors, combat electricity woes The new committee will tackle a decadeslong electricity problem, which is one of the complaints of last October's protesters. Iraq
Militia rockets kill five civilians in Iraqi capital as US mulls embassy withdrawal Two women and three children were killed at a Baghdad home on Monday as the United States threatens to pull its diplomatic mission. Iraq
Turkey backs Azerbaijan against Armenia as war looms over Caucasus Armenia and Azerbaijan are once again fighting over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in a conflict that could draw in Russia and Turkey. Turkey
UK returning 4,000-year-old artifact to Iraq discovered in online auction The Sumerian relic is thought to be among thousands of artifacts stolen from Iraq in the last century. Iraq
Intel: HTS claims credit for death of Iraqi IS leader's brother Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has claimed responsibility for killing the brother of Hajj Taysir, an Iraqi Islamic State emir killed by the United States earlier this year. Iraq
Iran tries to deescalate conflict between Armenia, Azerbaijan Iran has called for calm following the increase in tension between its northwestern neighbors Armenia and Azerbaijan. Iran
Jordan reopens major border crossing with Syria to truck traffic The Jaber-Nassib crossing has reopened for the first time since it was closed in August. Jordan
Top official of Syria's Kurdish-led alliance survives new assassination attempt Gunmen reportedly attacked a van carrying Laila al-Abdallah in Deir Ez-Zor. Syria
Beirut blast put 1 in 4 children at risk of missing school The Aug. 4 explosion in Lebanon's capital damaged 163 schools and left 85,000 students and their families with tough choices. Lebanon
Can Turkey replace Egypt in Palestinian unity process? The Fatah-Hamas reconciliation talks in Istanbul have fueled debate on whether Turkey could increase its influence over the Palestinians, who are desperate for regional support amid normalization deals between Arab countries and Israel. Turkey
