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
Iran operating new advanced centrifuges, nuclear watchdog finds According to an International Atomic Energy Agency report, Iran is now using IR-4 centrifuges to enrich uranium in violation of the nuclear accord. Iran
UN says Libya arms embargo 'totally ineffective' A United Nations panel of experts accused several member states, including Turkey and Russia, of fueling the Libyan conflict. Libya
Kurdish-backed militia launches Raqqa operation as another declares war on Turkey Coming just days after the Pentagon began distributing weapons to the YPG, Turkey could easily construe threats of escalation by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons as proof that US support for the Syrian Kurds emboldens the Kurdistan Workers Party. Syria
Turkey can't afford to take sides in Qatar crisis A rattled Ankara is trying to keep to the middle ground in the crisis around its ally Qatar, but its soft calls for dialogue are unlikely to have much impact. Qatar
New 'rules of the game' for Israeli-Hamas standoff The expulsion from Qatar of Hamas leaders and the movement's reconciliation with Iran has potentially changed the "rules of the game" between Israel and Hamas. Qatar
Jordan pins hopes on US-Russian accord on southern Syria Amid talks about secret trilateral meetings being held in Amman between Jordan, the United States and Russia to establish a de-escalation zone in southern Syria, Jordan would reject the presence of Islamic State militants on its northern borders, or fighters supported by Iran. Jordan
Online database gives uncensored look into Lebanon's censorship A Lebanese NGO has launched a virtual library to track the history of banned artistic works and products in Lebanon, shedding light on evolving limits of freedom of expression in the country. Lebanon
Applying the ‘Bosnian model’ to Syria’s crisis Could the United States and Russia learn from the Dayton Agreement to reach a lasting peace deal in Syria? Jordan
The story behind Israel’s atomic explosion plan For many years, Israel tried to prevent Brig. Gen. Yitzhak Yaakov from revealing the story of the 1967 plans to detonate an explosive device in the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt
Hamas executes convicted Israeli spies after breakneck trial Despite the legal issues that emerged in the prosecution of three men convicted of killing a Hamas military commander, Hamas carried out their execution in a matter of days of the trial's conclusion. Palestine
Saudi bloc splinters over hard line on Iran Riyadh summit may have fueled sectarian animosities; Hamas resets its ties with Iran and Russia. Saudi Arabia
Egypt, Russia cover lots of common ground in recent meeting Many countries were paying attention when Russia sent two top ministers to Cairo last week. Egypt
Ankara looks beyond Raqqa offensive for fate of northern Syria The Turkish government is worried about how the Democratic Union Party will transform northern Syria once the Islamic State is defeated in Raqqa. Iraq
Kurdish cantons in northern Syria already linked One of the most heated issues of the Syrian war has been the possibility of Kurdish cantons connecting, overcoming Turkey’s threatening objections. And now, with the Aleppo road open, Kurdish cantons are connected for the first time in four years. Iraq
