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
Putin, Netanyahu break ground on deeper Russia-Israel engagement The Israeli prime minister and the Russian president seemed to be on the same page on Syria and committed to closer ties during talks in Moscow. Israel
How this blockchain startup could help people transform traffic in Iran A private sector Iranian blockchain startup is offering a unique mix of decentralized facilities that could enable the general public to meaningfully tackle traffic congestion in Iran and beyond. Iran
Zarif: Iran never pinned hopes on Europe Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the Islamic Republic has not and will not pin its hopes on Europe to save the JCPOA and will focus instead on working with countries in the region. Iraq
Israeli-Arab party not ruling out joining future coalition Head of the Arab Hadash Party Ayman Odeh does not exclude entering a future coalition headed by Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, though he has a list of conditions. Israel
Iraq fears bevy of levees will mean parched years ahead Although the water level is high this year in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Turkey's imminent filling of the Ilisu Dam reservoir is raising concerns about Iraq's water flow next year and for years to come. Iraq
How Israeli minister pushed Palestinian prisoners to hunger strike Seniors at the Israel Prison Service warned Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan not to harshen conditions of the Palestinian prisoners or jam phone signals in jail, but he refused to listen. Palestine
Arab Israelis alienated by both top candidates as vote approaches As the two leading candidates for the Israeli premiership reject the idea of a coalition with Arab parties, it’s no wonder that Arab citizens are not planning to vote. Israel
Leader in Istanbul mayor's race worries about vote manipulation in recount A recount in the Istanbul mayor's race has seen opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu's lead fall from 23,000 to 21,500 over Binali Yildirim of the ruling Justice and Development Party; Imamoglu and others fear the electoral council might tamper with the results. Turkey
Can this project bring contemporary art to conservative towns in Palestine? Two Palestinian organizations have cooperated to launch a program in the conservative town of al-Dahriya that involved artists interacting with residents to prepare an exhibition. Palestine
Iranian MPs debate parliamentary elections at provincial level Iranian parliamentarians are debating legislation that could see parliamentary elections held at provincial levels, provided that the Guardian Council won’t strike down the idea yet again. Iran
Sisi keeps watchful eye on Al-Azhar's growing role abroad Egypt's president is reportedly concerned that Al-Azhar's increasing international activity is working to insulate itself from the Egyptian government's control. Egypt
