The Telegraph covers comments made by Syria’s President Assad, in which he accused Israel of supporting rebel forces, including Al-Qaeda which are seeking to oust him from power. Assad said that the air strike last week in Syria, which killed top Hezbollah commanders and an Iranian general was evidence of Israel acting as the opposition’s “air force.” Israeli officials have not confirmed who was responsible for the raid, but media reports suggest it targeted preparations for an attack on Israeli territory.

Meanwhile, the Times online says that the United States has given tacit backing to Assad remaining in power, by not objecting to the participation of his government at upcoming Russian-led peace talks in Moscow. Washington has previously insisted that Assad can play no part in Syria’s future government and administration.

The Guardian online reports that 43 reservists from the IDF’s elite 8200 cyber intelligence unit have been dismissed from service, having recently signed a letter refusing to take part in surveillance operations against Palestinians. The letter caused controversy at the time and was considered by some in Israel to have been an unnecessarily public political statement.

The Daily Express, Daily Mail and Metro all report on the trial of four teenage Muslim men who have pleaded guilty to racially aggravated common assault, when they attacked an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man in Gateshead, near Newcastle. The men claimed that their attack had been motivated by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In Egypt, the Guardian online says that a government-affiliated newspaper has taken the rare step of criticising the death of a 31-year-old woman who took part in a peaceful demonstration and was shot by masked men, assumed to be policeman. The incident was widely photographed and stirred public anger, despite a general disapproval for public challenges to the authority of President al-Sisi.

The top story in the Israeli media is the expected resignation of Deputy Police Commissioner Nissim Mor, after an investigation was launched into allegations that he sexually harassed nine police officers. It is the top story in Maariv, Haaretz, Israel Hayom and Yediot Ahronot which leads with the headline “Disgrace.” Israel Hayom highlights comments made by Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino who described it as a “difficult day for the police.” As noted by Yediot Ahronot, Mor becomes the eighth high-ranking police officer over the last two years to resign as a result of a scandal or be implicated in such an affair.

Both Yediot Ahronot and Maariv report that former-football legend Eli Ohana will join Jewish Home and is expected to be handed a realistically electable slot on the party list. Ohana has no prior political experience and previously expressed support for Israel’s disengagement from the Gaza Strip in 2005. However, he is a football icon for many and his candidacy may be perceived as a boost to Jewish Home’s chances of widening its appeal beyond the party’s traditional religious, right-wing support.

In other election-related news, a Channel Two poll published last night indicates that the Zionist Camp will be the largest party with 26 Knesset seats, followed by Likud on 23 seats. The poll also indicated that Jewish Home, Yesh Atid and Meretz had lost some ground.

Both Israel Hayom and Israel Radio news highlight that today is International Holocaust Memorial Day. Although Israel has its own commemorative day, there is nonetheless significant coverage. President Reuven Rivlin is scheduled to address a special United Nations session in New York tomorrow and Minister Silvan Shalom will join a delegation at Auschwitz today.