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
Turkey’s Kurdish sweep backfires President Erdogan’s Syria plan has had unintended ramifications: Saudi Arabia and the UAE are now cozying up to the Kurds, the Kurds are uniting, and the Russians are guiding the solutions on the ground. Syria
Iraq struggles with corruption as massive protests rage Iraq outlines the measures it is trying to take against corruption as criticism mounts against the government from within and without. Iraq
Lebanese municipalities encourage agriculture as famine specter looms Local municipalities in Lebanon’s villages are launching campaigns to promote agriculture and self-sufficiency amid food insecurity and deteriorating economic conditions. Lebanon
What happened to Israel's once-rising political star? Gesher leader Orly Levy-Abekasis promised Israeli voters a social issues-oriented agenda, but she has been little seen or heard since her election to the Knesset in September. Israel
Egypt firms up truce positions between Israel, Gaza factions Cairo brought together leaders of the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad political bureaus this month to ensure they're all on the same page regarding the truce with Israel. Palestine
Jordan digs deep to plant trees in Palestine A Jordanian campaign called Plant Your Resilience is planting trees to protect West Bank land from confiscation by Israel. Palestine
Trump says Iran prisoner swap shows deal can be made A successful US-Iran prisoner swap is a confidence building measure but it remains to be seen whether it could be a prelude to negotiations on broader US-Iran tensions. United States
Iran’s Reformists face major challenges in coming election Iran's Reformist factions are in for an uphill climb leading to the parliamentary election because of their legislators' lackluster performance since the 2016 election. Iran
Democratic lawmakers reckon with 2020 rhetoric on Israel aid Presidential candidates who want to place conditions on Israeli military aid have prompted pro-Israel House Democrats to go on the offensive. Palestine
Chaos spreads in Iraq as PM office remains vacant As Iraq approaches the constitutional deadline for selecting the new prime minister, chaos is spreading in the streets. Iraq
US sanctions three Iran-backed militia leaders for violence against Iraq protesters The United States will impose sanctions on three leaders of Iran-backed Iraqi militias that have committed human rights abuses against Iraqi protesters. Iraq
