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
Pentagon fails to deliver US strategy on Yemen The Pentagon has missed multiple congressional deadlines to report on US goals for the Saudi-led intervention. Yemen
Road map for Iran-EU trade and investment relations Europe is making efforts to set up a special purpose vehicle to uphold legitimate trade with Iran, but there is a need for a more comprehensive action plan for such trade and political relations. United States
Saudi-Iran conflict threatens to flare in Pakistan Recent Saudi investments in a Pakistani port near the border with Iran are likely to irk Tehran, but Islamabad’s strategic ties to both Tehran and Riyadh make it a prime contender to ease the tensions. Saudi Arabia
France bans flights operated by Iran's second-largest airline Iran's second-largest airline, Mahan Air, has to stop flights to Paris for what has been reported as sanctions imposed by the French government. United States
Turkish intervention could trigger Syria's 'second great war' Mazlum Kobane, the commander in chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, talks to Al-Monitor in an exclusive interview about how the Kurds in northeastern Syria have maintained a complicated network of alliances and why the prospect of Turkish intervention in the region could trigger another war. Syria
Erdogan’s government in panic over risk of electoral defeats President Erdogan and his party are waging an election campaign of unprecedented vitriol and polarization, including a strong dose of religion, the main driver of which is the fear of losing big cities amid the country’s economic crisis. Turkey
Turkey tightens the screws on Saudi Arabia over Khashoggi murder Interpol has issued “red notices,” on Ankara’s request, for a total of 20 Saudi citizens suspected of involvement in the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Arabia
Israeli court closes holy site flashpoint, goads Jordan to respond An Israeli court has temporarily closed an embattled Al-Aqsa site in an effort to relieve the simmering tension there and pressure Jordan into engaging with it. Palestine
Is Tehran trying to distance Qasem Soleimani from Iraq? The recent visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Iraq has been read as attempt to distance Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani from Iraq, replacing him with the Foreign Ministry. Iraq
Politicization of the anti-corruption campaign in Lebanon As Lebanon’s political parties, namely Hezbollah, are leading anti-corruption efforts by going after high-level former ministers, questions are raised about these efforts’ seriousness and effectiveness. Lebanon
Sisi taps military chum to reform Egypt's railways Egypt's fourth transportation minister in eight years vows to transform the country's dangerously dilapidated rail system, but some Egyptians wonder why a man with such a strong military background was selected for the job. Egypt
Why were rockets fired toward Tel Aviv? The Gaza Strip rushed to contain the repercussions of the rockets fired at Tel Aviv; such an attack that actually hit the Israeli city could drag Palestinians into a war. Palestine
