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
War-averse Trump looks for off ramp with Iran President Donald Trump “really wants to avoid a war,” former Trump National Security Council official Fred Fleitz said. United States
Russia offers to mediate in Syria-Lebanon maritime border dispute With its bid to mediate a Lebanon-Syria maritime dispute, Moscow is opening a new venue for engagement in the Levant. Lebanon
Iran: We gave 'multiple warnings' before downing drone Iranian officials have made statements to reduce tensions following the downing of an American drone off Iran's southern coast. United States
Turkey mulls permanent military presence in northern Iraq Turkey is considering setting up additional military infrastructure in Iraqi Kurdistan as its operations against militants there continue. Iraq
Will Syrian voters be kingmakers in Istanbul's mayoral election? Though small in number, the votes of naturalized Syrians in Turkey could be decisive in the rerun election to select the new mayor of Istanbul, the city with the largest Syrian population outside Syria. Syria
Greek Orthodox Church loses appeal on leases to settler group Israel's Supreme Court validated a controversial deal by the Greek Orthodox Church to lease real estate in Jerusalem's Old City to the pro-settlement group Ateret Cohanim. Palestine
Battle for Tripoli appears destined to grind on in Libya Since Libya’s eastern military commander Khalifa Hifter launched his April offensive against the capital Tripoli in the west, little progress has been made, while continuing attempts at peace have failed. Libya
As Idlib fighting intensifies, Syrians abroad suffer mentally As the Russian-backed Syrian regime steps up the offensive against the country’s last rebel stronghold, displaced Syrians with relatives in Idlib are suffering mentally — not to mention the monumental health issues faced by the Idlib residents themselves. Syria
Iraqi parliamentary groupings join hands in bid to oust Abdel Mahdi A bloc of Iraqi political parties comes together to form a strong opposition against Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi in an apparent bid to remove him from office. Iraq
Kirkuk court issues arrest warrant for acting governor An integrity court in Kirkuk has issued an arrest warrant for Rakan Saeed al-Jabouri, the acting governor of Kirkuk, on financial corruption charges. Iraq
Hydroponic agriculture could help preserve scarce water in Jordan Hydroponic agriculture, which does not require nearly as much water as traditionally grown crops, is being introduced to Jordan, a country with high water insecurity. Jordan
Egypt considers pros, cons of foreign citizenship changes Some in Egypt welcome proposed changes to citizenship laws for foreigners, saying they will increase investment in the country. Others harbor suspicions of ulterior motives. Egypt
