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
What's behind Egypt meeting with Greece, Cyprus at this time? The timing of the seventh tripartite summit between Egypt, Cyprus and Greece delivers clear and powerful messages that these countries support each other in the disputes they are facing. Egypt
Will Tunisia’s parties come together to form a government? The results of Tunisia’s legislative elections have raised questions about the future government and the alliances that will be formed, as the leading party, Ennahda, failed to receive a majority that would have allowed it to govern parliament. Tunisia
How far will Egypt go to defend Syria? Egypt has been spearheading efforts to halt Turkey's offensive in Syria and hosted an emergency Arab League meeting, but is this enough? Egypt
Operation Peace Spring: What is Turkish army's next step? As Turkey’s operation in northeast Syria enters its fifth day, the center of gravity of the operation shifts toward the west. Syria
US announces full withdrawal from northern Syria as Turkish forces advance Defense Secretary Mark Esper says the United States will be withdrawing all troops from northeastern Syria and that he expects Syrian Kurds to seek aid from Russia and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Syria
Who are Turkish-backed forces in latest Syria incursion? Turkey consolidates motley armed groups with checkered backgrounds from the Aleppo, Idlib and Latakia regions under the Syrian National Army banner and deploys them to the east of the Euphrates. Syria
Turkish economy faces fresh turmoil over Syrian operation Ankara’s new military campaign in Syria has raised the specter of fresh trouble for the crisis-hit Turkish economy, but the government hopes to compensate with political gains. Syria
US lobbying creates headaches for candidates back home An increasingly globalized political influence industry is triggering a global backlash. Tunisia
Sunnis support protests in Iraq, yet fear involvement Sunnis have been quiet during the recent protests in Iraq, but not because they aren't suffering along with their Shiite countrymen. Iraq
Pentagon blames Turkey for strikes near US troops in Syria The Pentagon held Turkey responsible for shelling American units in the Syrian city of Kobani on Friday, in spite of denials from Ankara. Turkey
