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 clears police officers of Giulio Regeni murder Italian authorities charged four Egyptian police personnel and gave them until today to present evidence in their defense. Egypt
Bus attack leaves dozens dead in eastern Syria Syrian soldiers were reportedly killed when a bus was ambushed in the Deir ez-Zor province. There is significant conflict in the area where Kurdish, government and Islamic State forces all have a presence. Syria
The Takeaway: Syrian-Kurdish fault line intensifies as Erdogan vows to crush ‘separatist terror’ Syrian, Russian, Turkish forces take positions as Kurdish leaders send plea for attention to incoming Biden administration. Originals
Egypt works to alter Turkey's Libya road map The first official visit from Egypt to Libya's internationally recognized Tripoli government aims to prevent a possible military push against strategic Sirte under the control of the rival group. Egypt
US again sends B-52 bombers to deter Iran as tensions peak The deployment is the third flight of nuclear-capable Stratofortresses to the region in less than two months Israel
Egypt launches first monitoring tobacco center in region as smoking on the rise In cooperation with the World Health Organization, Egypt launched the first observatory to monitor tobacco companies in the Middle East, as the country faces a growing number of tobacco users. Egypt
State Department denies forming group with Turkey on CAATSA sanctions After Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claimed that Ankara and the Washington were setting up a working group on US sanctions on Turkey, a State Department spokesperson denied the existence of any such body. Turkey
UN condemns Trump's pardon of contractors involved in killing of Iraqis A UN Human Rights Office expert said that the pardon of the men involved in the 2007 Nisour Square massacre undermines the obligation of states to hold war criminals accountable. Iraq
Turkey plays role in livestreaming of northern Syria soccer With the support of Turkey, a Syrian soccer tournament is being broadcast live on the internet, pushing many to follow the games, and advancing the sports sector in the area. Syria
Rouhani: Iran reserves right to avenge Soleimani death President Hassan Rouhani said Iran will avenge the US assassination of its top commander Qasem Soleimani and will continue to seek the ouster of American forces from the region. United States
Yemen airport comes under attack as new unity government arrives More than 20 people — but no arriving Cabinet officials — were reported killed. Yemen
Israeli airstrikes hit Syrian targets outside of Damascus The missiles reportedly killed a Syrian soldier in an air defense unit. Syria
