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
Lebanese photographers put protests under camera lens An exhibition held at the center of the protests in Beirut has introduced photography to the streets and has challenged artists to adapt to the revolutionary moment. Lebanon
Turkey’s fight against IS riddled with black holes Ankara may boast about how many Islamic State members it has captured, but its handling of IS suspects on the ground, especially in deportation centers, speaks of a slipshod attitude to the problem. Syria
Gaza attacks widen gap between Israel's Arab parties, Gantz in coalition talks The Israeli assassination of an Islamic Jihad leader and the killing of 32 Palestinians, including women and children, has ended any possibility of engagement by the Arab Joint List with Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz. Palestine
Egypt conducts joint drills with Greece, Cyprus amid Turkey tensions The naval forces of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus conducted joint military exercises in the Mediterranean amid tensions with Turkey over its drilling activities in the area. Egypt
IS kills priests in Syria as Turkish-backed fighters express IS sympathies Two Armenian Catholic priests are killed by the Islamic State near Hasakah and pro-Turkish Syrian fighters are reported to have hoisted the Islamic State flag in Ras al-Ain. Syria
Did Turkey backstab Syrian opposition's National Army? Turkey's catch-and-release handling of 18 regime fighters captured by the Syrian opposition shocked many opposition forces. Syria
Probe claims State Department sidelined Iran expert in politicized smear campaign The State Department's Office of the Inspector General finds that “improper considerations played a role" in the removal of a career employee's assignment to the department's policy planning office. United States
Russia seems set to establish new military base in northeast Syria Russia has been fortifying its military presence in Qamishli and appears to be constructing a military base there, its third in Syria. Syria
Hamas arrests gunmen trying to cross into Sinai Hamas' security efforts are paying off, stopping suspected terrorists from crossing into Egypt on twice in one week. Palestine
Erdogan lauds Trump for 'sincere' efforts to fix ties with Turkey The Turkish president received a warm welcome in Washington despite launching a military operation in northeast Syria that has upended US regional policy and defying NATO to acquire Russian weapons. Turkey
Islamic Jihad holds firm on Gaza cease-fire conditions Islamic Jihad has vowed to avenge Israel’s assassination of its commander and the attempted killing of another leader in Syria. Palestine
Rouhani: US no friend of Muslims, Mideast President Hassan Rouhani has continued his new anti-US position at the latest Islamic Unity Conference. United States
