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’s Khamenei vows ‘definite’ revenge for US killing of Soleimani Iran’s supreme leader said revenge for the killing of Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani is a definite plan, as he called on regional nations to push for the ouster of US forces. United States
Lebanese activist sentenced to prison for collaborating with Israel Kinda El-Khatib, a critic of Hezbollah on social media, was sentenced to three years in prison by a military court. Lebanon
Washington on the spot as its Syrian Kurd allies are drawn into PKK-KDP fight Reported border clash worsens conflict between Kurdish factions in triangle where US, Turkish and Syrian and Iraqi Kurdish forces come into play. Syria
Egypt’s scorpion king hunts fortune in the desert An Egyptian man gave up his archeology job to gather scorpions and snakes and extract their venom for medicinal purposes. Egypt
Turkish Central Bank to pursue tight monetary policy against inflation Turkey’s Central Bank Governor Naci Agbal said Wednesday he would seek to stem inflation, possibly through further rate hikes, pledging to continue tight monetary policies and stabilize the nation’s currency. Turkey
Migrants allege abuse, degrading conditions in Saudi deportation center A new report from Human Rights Watch describes squalid conditions at a facility detaining mostly Ethiopian migrants in Riyadh. Saudi Arabia
Muqtada al-Sadr shakes up Iraqi politics by calling for new Shite bloc Muqtada al-Sadr’s calls to restore the "Shiite Home" were viewed as an attempt to revive the electoral Shiite alliance that cracked during recent legislative elections. Iraq
Second US lawsuit hits Qatar National Bank over terrorist finances A new lawsuit filed in the United States naming institutions tied to Qatar's royal family is seeking damages for victims of terrorist attacks in Israel Qatar
Doha named 2030 Asian Games host, Riyadh gets 2034 Gulf rivals Qatar and Saudi Arabia were both vying for 2030 hosting rights. Saudi Arabia
Turkish defense industry risks big damage from US sanctions The US sanctions targeting Turkey’s defense industry agency may be seen as rather mild by some observers, but they threaten to deprive Turkey of key military technology should they last more than a year. Turkey
Derelict Gaza airport becomes racetrack for cars, camels Gazans have been racing their camels, horses and cars at the abandoned site of what once served as Gaza’s airport. Palestine
Israel, US, UAE, Bahrain to cooperate on energy Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz participated in a first-of-its-kind meeting with his counterparts from the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to create a platform of cooperation. Israel
