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
Iran nuclear deal members agree on preserving landmark pact Iran and representatives of China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom met in Vienna as Washington presses on with its bid to restore sanctions on Tehran. Russia
Can Egypt prosecute 54 million voters? In a first of its kind, Egypt has referred more than 54 million voters to the public prosecution office for their failure to vote in the Senate elections. Egypt
US vetoes UN resolution on foreign terrorists, citing lack of repatriation language The United States said the Security Council resolution did not mention the need to send Islamic fighters to their home countries. US-backed forces detain thousands of them in Syria. Originals
After understandings with Hamas, Israel pushes for comprehensive cease-fire Israel warns Hamas that in order for the temporary cease-fire to be implemented, balloon terror from the Gaza Strip must stop. Palestine
Senior Islamic State figure in custody after Turkish raid Turkish police detained a top Islamic State figure during a raid in the nation’s southern province of Adana as counterterrorism operations continue against the organization’s networks. Turkey
Israel, UAE sign first agreement on investment, financial services Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said announcements in aviation, tourism, trade and other areas of mutual interest will follow. United Arab Emirates
Intel: US returns Baath Party archives to Iraq After 15 years in the United States, millions of government documents from the Saddam Hussein era have returned to Iraq. Iraq
Qatar, UAE battle at the Hague over UN anti-discrimination resolution At the International Court of Justice, Qatar and the UAE are arguing over whether the latter violated the UN resolution when it took various actions against Qatar during the 2017 crisis. Originals
Khamenei blasts Emirati ‘treason’ against Muslims after Israel deal In a strongly worded speech, Iran’s supreme leader attacked the UAE government for normalizing ties with Israel, a move he slammed as “treason” against the Islamic world. Iran
Intel: Greece seeks French military aircraft as Turkey renews gas exploration in eastern Mediterranean Athens seeks French military hardware amid sharp tensions with Ankara. Turkey
Austria says Turkish spy caught amid probe into Turkish-Kurdish clashes Austria will prosecute an individual who reportedly confessed to spying on behalf of Turkey. Turkey
Ankara accused of weaponizing pandemic measures against opposition The Turkish government is accused of abusing pandemic restrictions to suppress the opposition and advance its own political agenda. Turkey
