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
Egypt, Bahrain adopt 'wait and see' approach to reconciliation with Qatar Egypt awaits Qatar to take actions on the ground in accordance with Al-Ula Declaration that ended the boycott of Doha, but amid concerns that Qatar will bail out on its commitments. Bahrain
Jobless Syrians have little use for government’s new construction training program Syrians are reluctant to apply to the technical training centers the regime plans to establish because of the shockingly low stipends provided. Syria
Gazans outraged over million-dollar mosque reconstruction The reconstruction of a mosque at a cost of $1 million in the cash-strapped Gaza Strip has shocked Gaza's largely impoverished population. Palestine
Joint List splits as elections near Ra'am has left the Joint List, saying it can't do the work needed to effect decision-making in Israel while tied to lawmakers who refuse to engage in the political process. Israel
The Takeaway: If the phone doesn’t ring: Biden, Bibi still haven’t talked Iran and March 23 elections are top of mind for Israeli prime minister; can the US and Iran find common ground in Yemen?; Egypt’s diplomatic surge hopes to catch Biden’s eye; why did Rouhani mention UNSCR 598? Originals
US stands firm as Turkey proposes to ‘find solution’ over S-400 The State Department urged ally Ankara to get rid of the Russian air defense system Turkey
Oman closes land border, parks and beaches as vaccine rollout continues The sultanate's anti-virus committee announced several new restrictions on travel and gatherings on Wednesday. Oman
57 nations hit for failure to repatriate women, children from Syrian camps UN human rights experts are pressing Great Britain, France, Iran, Russia, Turkey, the United States and 51 other countries to repatriate nearly 10,000 of their citizens associated with the Islamic State. Syria
Israeli-developed coronavirus medicine shows promising results The coronavirus medicine developed by the Tel Aviv Ichilov Hospital shows promising results, thus offering hope to patients. Israel
Turkey to purchase fourth drilling ship to expand energy projects Amid maritime boundary disputes in the eastern Mediterranean and after a 2020 gas field discovery the Black Sea, Turkey’s state-owned oil and gas company is finalizing the purchase of a fourth drilling ship to expand its energy development activities. Turkey
Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul released from prison Hathloul, who was arrested after campaigning for women's driving rights, had spent nearly three years in prison. Saudi Arabia
Israel’s military skirts budget restrictions for $9 billion air force upgrade The IDF will use a chunk of US aid and foreign borrowing to help fund its planned expansion of the air force's strike range Israel
