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
Gantz-Netanyahu unity deal revised after High Court warning Eager to see their government unity agreement approved by the High Court, Likud and Blue and White announced several changes to their pact. Israel
Iran seems to reconsider military entrenchment in Syria According to Israeli assessments, Iran has begun giving up on its tremendous military investment in Syria. Israel
In Lebanon’s new wave of protests and riots, Tripoli is leading the way Lebanon’s protests have resumed, but more violently, especially in Tripoli, where bank facades were smashed and a protester was killed by the army. Lebanon
Jordan left with struggling economy following lockdown The Jordanian economy has been dealt a heavy blow by the measures imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus and now that the lockdown has been lifted, the government is looking into ways to get business going again and mitigate the damage. Jordan
Arab mayors in Israel strike against unfair distribution of pandemic funding The heads of Arab Israeli localities are leading a strike in protest of their communities receiving a tiny share of state compensation for losses due to the novel coronavirus. Israel
Intel: J Street launches push to include Palestinian rights in Democratic Party platform The left-leaning lobby group J street endorsed a letter today featuring 32 foreign policy professionals urging the Democratic National Committee to make Palestinian rights part of its 2020 platform. Palestine
Egypt says IS militants killed in Sinai following attack Egypt said Sunday that it killed the IS militants in a gunfight in Sinai following an IS-claimed attack there last week. Egypt
First Purple Hearts issued to US soldiers wounded in Iran missile strike on bases in Iraq The US military issues six Purple Hearts for service members who suffered brain injuries in January and plans to give out 23 more. Iraq
Ilhan Omar signs onto AIPAC letter siding with Trump on Iran After clashing repeatedly with AIPAC, Rep. Ilhan Omar has signed onto one of their key lobby agenda items for this year. Israel
Some Lebanese restaurants reopen with restrictions in place Not all Lebanese restaurants could afford to reopen after the government allowed them to operate at a limited capacity today. Originals
China ramps up COVID-19 diplomacy in Mideast As the Trump administration tries to link the coronavirus to a Chinese laboratory, Beijing is using the pandemic to strengthen ties in the Gulf. Saudi Arabia
Death of Egyptian director whose video mocked Sisi prompts calls for investigation Filmmaker Shady Habash, who was arrested after directing a controversial music video, died at the age of 24 in a Cairo prison. Egypt
