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
Erdogan FC: A soccer dream deferred Turkish media recently reported the founding of a soccer team called the Presidency Sports Club, but in less than a day all traces of the team had vanished. It's not likely the end of the story. Turkey
Suez Canal tunnels expected to bring new life to Sinai Egypt is expected to complete the construction of four tunnels under the Suez Canal, which will boost economic growth in the marginalized Sinai Peninsula. Egypt
Abbas trying to build countermovement to the US Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas recently called on the African Union to supervise the upcoming legislative elections, while also calling for an international peace conference, which is seen as a move away from the US administration in sponsoring peace talks with Israel. Palestine
Iraq-Jordan trade deal opens new doors for regional trade A breakthrough trade agreement may signal new trend toward integration; Erdogan plays Syria card in Turkish elections; HTS undermines Turkish-backed groups in Idlib. Iraq
Trump introduced Qatari to donor pursuing nuclear power project, report says A Tennessee businessman says US President Donald Trump introduced him to a potential Qatari investor at his Mar-a-Lago resort in spring 2018. Saudi Arabia
Iraq’s two leading parliamentary movements amp up coordination The Fatah and Sairoon movements have stepped up their efforts to see that the Cabinet is completed and for the government to properly face the issues ahead. Iraq
Intel: How center-left coalition has thrown Netanyahu’s re-election in doubt Former Israeli army chief Benny Gantz and centrist leader Yair Lapid have upended Israel’s upcoming elections with their decision today to join forces against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel
Turkey renews plans to drill off Cyprus Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkey would begin exploring for hydrocarbons off the Mediterranean island in the coming days, frustrated by what it sees as Cyprus' unilateral exploitation of natural resources. Turkey
Iran’s Khamenei moves to usher in new generation of revolutionaries Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s vision of a “Second Step of the Revolution” has led to analysis about the youth role in its implementation. Iran
Egypt eyes Asian tourists Almost four years after the Russian plane crash over Egypt’s Sinai, the country’s recovering tourism sector is moving to expand the Asian markets. Egypt
Turkish judiciary toughens stance on ‘Kurdistan’ groups The word “Kurdistan” is once again becoming taboo in Turkey, with the judiciary targeting parties and civic groups that use the word in their names. Turkey
