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 lobbies Congress against lifting Cyprus arms embargo as tensions mount Ankara is scrambling to keep Congress from lifting a three-decade arms embargo on Cyprus as US-Turkey tensions mount. Turkey
Trump touts Syria deal as Congress advances sanctions A high-level US delegation has worked out a deal to temporarily halt Turkey’s violent weeklong offensive into northern Syria, but many in the Trump administration believe the price the Kurds are paying is too high. Syria
Turkish foreign minister: US-Turkey deal 'not a cease-fire' Vice President Mike Pence announced that Turkish officials have agreed to suspend military operations in northeast Syria for five days to allow Kurdish forces to withdraw from the border area. Syria
Putin's visit draws UAE, Russia closer The UAE's welcoming ceremony for Putin outperformed that of the Saudis but this is not the only reason why the Russian president left Abu Dhabi happy. Legacy: Gulf
Netanyahu discovers hospitality has its limits Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tried to ingratiate himself at both the White House and the Kremlin, but now finds himself home alone. Palestine
Pompeo visit fails to reassure Israel on Syria, Iran The meeting of US secretary of State Mike Pompeo with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not reassure Jerusalem over developments in Syria and Iran. Israel
Has Israel’s political left given up? Contrary to their enthusiasm ahead of the Sept. 17 election, former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and his colleagues in the leadership of the left-wing camp seem to have disappeared lately from the political arena. Israel
Pentagon turns to irregular tactics to counter Iran The Pentagon is trying to put the finishing touches on a plan to use irregular warfare tactics to temper Iran’s military escalation in the Middle East, Al-Monitor has learned. United States
Netanyahu camp adds Arab 'extortion' to right-wing playbook With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unable to form a government with his right-wing allies, he and his associates hope to prevent others from succeeding at the task by launching a new line of attack inciting against the Arab parties and branding those who cooperate with them as security threats. Israel
Is Kurdish dream of autonomy coming to an end? The clouds of doubt over the Kurdish autonomy project in northern Syria have thickened after the Kurds struck a military alliance with Damascus, without getting any assurances on their future political rights. Syria
Arrest of Telegram channel operator surprises Iranians The operator of a popular dissident Telegram channel was in Iraq when he was apprehended and handed to Iran, according to BBC Persian. Iran
Families of Sadr City ‘martyrs’ say protests will resume Families and friends of the dozens of protesters from Baghdad’s Sadr City killed in the recent protests say they doubt reforms announced by the prime minister will significantly affect the current situation. They warn that protests will continue unless they see real change. Iraq
