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
Coronavirus reveals Palestinian economic dependence on Israel The coronavirus crisis reveals the dependence of the Palestinian economy on its Israeli counterpart, especially with regard to workers and the sources of income of thousands of families in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Palestine
Will post-coronavirus world bring chill to Israel-China relations? Not everyone in Israel, especially in the defense establishment, is enthusiastic about cooperating with a large China company in the battle against the coronavirus. Israel
What oil markets' 'bloody Monday' means for Gulf producers Gulf producers must navigate between an angry White House and Congress, with the threat of tariffs, and uncertainty regarding Asian partners and demand as a result of the pandemic. Legacy: Gulf
Iranian FM meets with Syria’s Assad amid coronavirus pandemic Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif meets with his counterpart Walid Moallem and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as Turkey accuses Syria of breaking the cease-fire in Idlib province. Syria
Israel's Netanyahu, Gantz reach deal on unity government The latest deal will allow Netanyahu to stay on as prime minister for the next 18 months while ensuring a leadership position for three years. Israel
Jordan eases lockdown, focuses on opening economy Jordan ends the lockdown in Aqaba while keeping certain restrictions in place and eases curfews elsewhere as the region's first country to enforce a nationwide lockdown now seeks to gradually reopen its economy. Jordan
Containing corruption key to Iran’s economic recovery Iran is struggling to restart its economy in the face of COVID-19, sanctions and unchecked government misconduct, yet a recent report indicates that addressing these problems could fuel economic growth by next year. Business
Turkey overtakes China as biggest COVID-19 hotspot outside US, Europe With over 86,000 cases, Turkey has overtaken China as the country with the most confirmed cases of COVID-19 outside of the United States and Europe. Turkey
Iran says pandemic will not force talks with the US In today's Iran media review, Iranian officials have rejected a statement by US President Donald Trump to enter negotiations with the United States. United States
Israelis find creative ways to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day With social distancing in place and with many traditional Holocaust memorial ceremonies canceled, Israelis have come up with many different ways to remember the victims and pay tribute to survivors. Israel
Turkish mayor, wife shot at home The early morning shooting of a mayor and his wife in western Turkey has raised concerns among opposition lawmakers, who say a recently passed partial amnesty law may embolden criminals. Turkey
Repatriation flights take stranded workers home to Pakistan from UAE The first flight of 20 special flights to repatriate Pakistanis stranded in the United Arab Emirates left Dubai on Saturday. United Arab Emirates
