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Originals

Palestinian supporters of the Hamas movement wave flags as they rally against Israel's plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, in Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza Strip, on June 19, 2020. - Israel intends to annex West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley, as proposed by US President Donald Trump, with initial steps slated to begin from July 1. (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS / AFP) (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images)

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!

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.

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.

A worker unloads a refrigerated truck carrying the first delivery of coronavirus vaccine via the United Nations Covax programme supporting poorer areas, to be kept at Palestinian Authority's storage facility in the West Bank city of Nablus, on March 17, 2021. - The Palestinian Authority said that vaccination would begin at the end of this week, primarily for those aged over 75, cancer patients and medical personnel.
Earlier, some 60,000 doses of Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines allocated to the Palestinians

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.

Latest News

Tunisian president meets new Libyan unity government

Iran operating new advanced centrifuges, nuclear watchdog finds

A cameraman arrives at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),prior to a press conference at the agency's headquarters in Vienna on March 4, 2021. - European nations will not go ahead with a planned resolution criticising Iran at this week's meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog, diplomatic sources said on March 4, 2021. (Photo by ALEX HALADA / AFP) (Photo by ALEX HALADA/AFP via Getty Images)

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Lawsuit filed to close pro-Kurdish party after lawmaker stripped of parliamentary seat

Turkish member of Parliament for the left wing political party Peoples' Democratic Party Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu (C) reacts as he is surrounded by MPs applauding and brandishing placards after he was dismissed following a vote at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara, on March 17, 2021. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Israeli and Emirati rugby teams to play each other for first time

United Arab Emirates

Israeli military: Palestinian attacker shot and killed by soldiers

Israeli and Palestinian officials offer differing accounts of West Bank violence.

Following Netanyahu, Israeli politicians flock to TikTok

With an election campaign practically virtual, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli politicians flock to TikTok.

Iraqi youths watch an event celebrating the inauguration of a street named after the late Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in the southern city of Basra on January 8, 2021, more than a year after a US drone strike killed Iran's revered commander Qasem Soleimani and his Iraqi lieutenant Muhandis (image) near the capital. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP) (Photo by HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi Kurdish officials call Iran's Soleimani film 'insult' to Peshmerga

Peshmerga that fought on the front lines against the Islamic State see the film as an "insult and belittling the role of Peshmergas."

HAMDAYET, SUDAN - DECEMBER 6: A woman walks with a donkey as refugees from the Tigray region of Ethiopia wait to be transferred to a camp with more infrastructure at a UNHCR reception area in the east Sudanese border village of Hamdayet on December 6, 2020 in Hamdayet, Sudan. Last week, the Ethiopian government declared victory in its nearly month-long battle with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which sent 45,000 people fleeing to Sudan and displaced thousands more within the Tigray Region. In

How Egypt is supporting Sudan in border conflict

As tensions escalate between Sudan and Ethiopia on the border, a Sudanese delegation headed to Cairo raising questions about Egypt’s role in the conflict.

TOPSHOT - Isreali Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the Kohelet Policy Forum conference in Jerusalem, on January 8, 2020. - Netanyahu today warned Israel would strike a "resounding blow" if attacked by arch foe Iran, as regional tensions spike after the US killing of military commander Qasem Soleimani. (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu bristles in warning as Biden seeks reentry to Iran deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hinting to the new US administration that reentering the original nuclear deal with Iran could spell Israeli military action.

A picture taken on February 19, 2020, shows a general view of the airport of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo upon the relaunch of commercial flights. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

As Syrian regime touts reopening, Iran continues to lurk at Aleppo airport

International air traffic has resumed at Aleppo International Airport, but it is believed to remain under the control of Iranian forces.

TOPSHOT - A picture taken during a press tour provided by the Russian Armed Forces on September 15, 2017 shows Russian soldiers standing guard in a central street in Syria's eastern city of Deir Ezzor, as local children pose nearby. / AFP PHOTO / France2 / Dominique DERDA (Photo credit should read DOMINIQUE DERDA/AFP via Getty Images)

Is Russia exploiting Iranian weakness in east Syria?

Iranian forces are concerned about losing their influence and their members in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province in favor of the formations supported by Russia.

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 06: U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman addresses the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's annual policy conference at the Washington Convention Center March 6, 2018 in Washington, DC. With thousands of delegates and attendees, the annual AIPAC conference is the largest gathering of the pro-Israel movement in the United States. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

PA vows to sue US ambassador over support to Israeli settlements

The Palestinian Authority has threatened to sue former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman after he recognized the City of David settlement project in Jerusalem.

Iranian commander threatens to 'destroy' US ships

A general in Iran's elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps made the provocative statement less than a week into Joe Biden's presidency. The new US president has said he wants to talk with Iran.

Greece, France sign fighter jet deal amid tensions with Turkey

Athens' roughly $3 billion purchase of 18 Rafale fighter jets comes as Greek officials meet Turkish counterparts for exploratory talks to resolve disputes.

Criminal violence escalates among Arab communities in Israel

Violence is escalating among Arab communities in Israel, with no prospect for Israeli authorities stepping in to keep the peace.

US Marine Corps General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., Commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), poses for a picture during his visit to a military base in al-Kharj in central Saudi Arabia on July 18, 2019. - McKenzie pledged on July 18 to work "aggressively" to ensure maritime safety in strategic Gulf waters after a spate of attacks blamed on Iran. McKenzie's visit to Saudi Arabia comes a day after the US House voted to block $8.1 billion in arms sales to the kingdom and other allies, in a move likely to be

Intel: CENTCOM chief tours Mideast in first trip under Biden administration

Gen. Kenneth McKenzie is scheduled to stop in Israel later this week as the Joe Biden administration seeks strategic dialogue to build on the Abraham Accords.