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
Avigdor Liberman's life mission: to topple Netanyahu Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Liberman’s paramount mission is to unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even if it means setting aside his prime ministerial ambitions. Israel
Soccer academy for African refugees in Egypt A South Sudanese man in Egypt recently opened an academy to teach and train African refugees passionate about soccer. Egypt
Egyptians abroad weighing lobby to boost country's image in US The General Union of Egyptians Abroad will lobby the Biden administration on President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's achievements. Egypt
Egypt seeks to turn into regional hub for electricity supply As part of plans to turn into a major regional hub for electricity and since Egypt has a surplus of power, the Ministry of Electricity announced plans to increase the capacity of an interconnection line between Egypt and Libya. Egypt
First court victory for opponents of Jerusalem cable car project Israel's High Court has halted the cable car Jerusalem project for now, but opponents of the project fear it will not be blocked indefinitely. Israel
At least one killed in Baghdad explosion The grenade attack targeted a group of people commemorating a late imam who is revered by Shiite Muslims; the attack follows an Islamic State attack in the Iraqi capital in January. Iraq
Biden administration reviewing old authorizations for military force There is bipartisan pressure from Congress to repeal the September 11 and Iraq War era authorizations following a US airstrike in Syria that was approved without congressional approval. Originals
As pope ends trip, Iraq's prime minister calls for national dialogue Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi applauded Pope Francis' visit as a great success and reached out to the Iraqi people and different parties to form a dialogue of understanding and tolerance among them. Iraq
Intel: US sends B-52 bombers back to Middle East amid attacks by Iran-linked proxies Following drone and missile strikes on Saudi Arabia this weekend, it is not clear that the Pentagon's deterrence tactic is paying off. Saudi Arabia
Palestinian shot in the West Bank after clash with Israeli soldiers Clashes between Israelis and Palestinians are common in the territory. Palestine
Israel begins vaccination drive for Palestinian workers More than 122,000 Palestinians working in Israel or its settlements are eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine. Palestine
Barred from traveling by their husbands, Iranian women suffer under unjust laws While a new bill awaiting parliament’s approval aims to address gender discrimination and stop violence against women, it falls short in guaranteeing Iranian women equal rights. Iran
