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
Jordan wary of Trump’s plan to label Muslim Brotherhood terrorist body Jordanian King Abdullah seems keen to unite the domestic front ahead of the unveiling of the US peace plan, despite past differences with the Muslim Brotherhood. Jordan
PA wants to break free from reliance on Israeli electricity Jordan and the Palestinian Authority are about to sign an agreement under which the kingdom would supply electricity to the West Bank. Palestine
Festival brings Sufi bands from region and beyond to Palestine This year's Al-Kamandjati festival has brought Sufi music to Palestinians despite some technical difficulties and entry permit denials for musicians. Palestine
Can Israel’s Blue and White party get people into the street? If Benjamin Netanyahu’s fifth government takes steps to keep the prime minister from facing a criminal trial, it will be necessary to bring hundreds of thousands of people to Rabin Square to protest at what is happening to Israel’s democracy. Israel
Gaza escalation; a prelude to Hamas-Israel war? The Israeli army has adopted a new approach vis-a-vis Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, with retaliation against rocket fire and targeted killings. Palestine
Israel, Qatar interests merge on Gaza, West Bank In order to ameliorate its image in Washington, Qatar is now ready to extract Israel from the complicated situation it got into by withholding money from the Palestinian Authority. Saudi Arabia
Trump to Iran: Call me Amid rising tensions, President Donald Trump urged Iran three times to call him and said he believed they could make a fair deal. Iraq
Pentagon’s new Middle East chief fixes sights on Iran threat Gen. Frank McKenzie, the Pentagon’s new top military commander in the Middle East, faces the lingering threat of Iran with limited military authorities at his disposal and a wary Congress. United States
Congress tries to defund US nuclear transfers to Saudi Arabia House Democrats want to use the power of the purse to halt the transfer of US civil nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia
Campaign for Istanbul do-over election underway Opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu, who narrowly won election as the city’s mayor in March, begins his campaign anew after electoral officials revoked his mandate this week. The ruling party says a rerun election will provide clarity after a bitterly disputed vote. Turkey
US condemnation of Muslim Brotherhood would cost Turkey dearly If the Donald Trump administration brands the Muslim Brotherhood a terror organization to please its Gulf allies and Egypt, it will create a major headache for Turkey. Turkey
Istanbul election rerun brings Turkey fresh economic turmoil The cancellation of the opposition victory in the mayoral race in Istanbul has raised the specter of more trouble for the Turkish economy, which is already grappling with recession and currency-related tumult. Turkey
