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
Israel hatches plan to vaccinate Palestinian workers Israel’s Health Ministry is reportedly awaiting permission to use the country's stock of Moderna vaccines for Palestinians working in Israel. Palestine
Egyptian energy minister on rare visit in Israel Egyptian Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Tarek el-Mulla visited Israel yesterday to advance the regional gas forum, meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi. Israel
Erbil court convicts journalists, activists of spying, organizing armed groups Five defendants, including journalists and activists, were sentenced to prison in Erbil in a decision that international rights groups say is an attack on press freedoms. Iraq
How the Syrian government benefits from opening crossings with opposition-held areas Russia announced that the Syrian government was getting ready to open several crossings with the Syrian opposition in Idlib, a move that is mainly seen as an attempt by the regime to alleviate the economic strain of US sanctions. Syria
Push to remove Quran from Egyptian textbooks faces backlash Egypt’s parliamentary Defense and National Security Committee is discussing a plan to remove Quranic verses from the general curriculum and limit them to religious courses, part of a plan to fight extremism. Egypt
In Syria’s Deir ez-Zor, SDF conscription ‘severs livelihoods’ The Syrian Democratic Forces' recent campaign to conscript youth for military service is compounding economic hardship in Deir ez-Zor province, one of the poorest areas of Syria. In villages where the campaign is most active, young men are staying home for fear of arrest, forgoing daily wages and delaying grocery purchases to avoid passing by checkpoints. Syria
Gaza court revises women’s travel restrictions after backlash Outrage erupted in the Gaza Strip after a judge issued a ruling banning unmarried women from traveling without the consent of a male guardian, yet a revised ruling doesn't go far enough, activists say. Palestine
Will Nasser al-Qudwa be the dark horse of Palestinian presidential race? Nasser al-Qudwa seems to be emerging as the dark horse in the Palestinian election gambit. A look at his strategy for the Palestinian elections. Palestine
Egypt forges ahead with campaign to make the Nile 100% plastic free The VeryNile initiative has been working since 2018 to remove plastic waste from the Nile River and has launched a project to support the fishermen of Cairo by providing them with additional income and access to health services. Egypt
Israel cheers for exiled Iranian judo master Israelis have embraced exiled Iranian judoka Saeid Mollaei, who defected for his sport and recently competed in Tel Aviv. Israel
Israeli-Arabs suffer selective enforcement over coronavirus rules violations The numbers are clear: Arab towns and villages now have fewer coronavirus cases than ultra-Orthodox localities, yet enforcement of coronavirus restrictions is much much higher there. Originals
GCC states race for foreign investment Despite the Saudi-led effort to bury the hatchet with Qatar, unified economic policies are coming up against by GCC countries’ needs to win foreign investment post-COVID. Saudi Arabia
