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
Mosul sowing seeds post-Islamic State The Mosul local government in cooperation with civil society is undertaking a project to plant a million trees in Mosul. Iraq
Iran executes man it says spied for US and Israel Mahmoud Mousavi Majd was found guilty of reporting the whereabouts of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian military commander killed in a US drone strike. Iran
Turkey suspends Iran and Afghanistan flights due to virus concerns Turkey resumed international passenger flights last month. Both Iran and Afghanistan are experiencing hardship containing the coronavirus. Turkey
Saudi King Salman hospitalized in Riyadh The 84-year-old monarch suffered from gallbladder inflammation, according to a statement from the royal court. Saudi Arabia
Zarif's visit to Baghdad foreshadows Iraqi PM's trips to Iran and Saudi Arabia In today's Iran media review, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif visited Iraq for the first time since Iran’s former Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani was assassinated by the United States in January. Iraq
Iraqi Kurds fear Turkey’s military campaign aims beyond PKK Iraqi Kurds worry that Turkey’s pursuit of PKK militants inside Iraqi Kurdistan could result in a permanent Turkish military presence and moves to undermine their autonomous region. Turkey
Major US energy deal could shake up Israeli gas fields Chevron acquisition of the American company Noble Energy could affect gas drilling in the Israeli Tamar and Leviathan fields. Israel
Iraq struggles to maintain power balance The Iraqi government is trying hard to reduce tensions in the country and maintain a power balance between regional and international forces in order to initiate its reform plan. Iraq
History repeats itself in Iran's currency exchange market The Iranian rial continues to lose value against foreign currency, as exporters face high costs due to sanctions and the government continues a policy of forcing them to accept low exchange rates. Iran
Push to revamp education funding falls flat in Israel Despite a grand five-year plan to invest in education for Arab-Israelis, the gaps between the Jewish and Arab education systems in Israel have only grown. Israel
Calling of witnesses in Netanyahu's trail fixed for January 2021 The Jerusalem District Court decided that the next phase in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trail will take place in January 2021, with witnesses called to the court three times a week. Originals
Israelis to be barred from Jewish New Year pilgrimage to Ukraine Uman’s Mayor Oleksandr Tsebriy caused a major storm after he announced that Israeli-Jewish pilgrims would be barred from the city this year. Israel
