The Financial Times reports that Israel’s cabinet yesterday approved a scheme to bring 20,000 construction workers from China into the country. It is part of a plan, spearheaded by Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, to lower the price of housing. However, the plan to import cheaper Chinese labour came under fire from opposition leaders who said that it would undercut local construction workers.

The Independent says that Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, now 80-years-old, is considering standing aside and gradually relinquishing power. However, there is no obvious successor, leaving the prospect of a damaging power vacuum.

The Independent online reports that Egyptian authorities have flooded the remaining supply tunnels from the Gaza Strip into the Sinai Peninsula. Cairo has cracked down in recent years on what was once a flourishing trade through the smuggling tunnels. However, Egypt’s leaders believe that they are a conduit for weapons and fighters aiding Islamist terror groups in Sinai.

The Financial Times online reports that the government is “cautiously optimistic” of carrying a House of Commons vote in favour of air strikes in Syria. According to the Guardian online, Shadow Foreign Secretary Hilary Benn has indicated that Labour could support such a motion, despite opposition from party leader Jeremy Corbyn. In Syria itself, the Financial Times online says that the Obama Administration is concerned over the presence of Russian air-to-surface missiles, which would appear to have little relevance in the fight against ISIS. Meanwhile, the Telegraph online reports that 75 US-trained rebel fighters have entered Syria via Turkey to help tackle ISIS.

The Independent i covers a symbolic visit by Yukiya Amano, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to the Parchin nuclear facility in Iran. It remains unclear what mechanism has been agreed between the IAEA and Iran to inspect Parchin as a result of the recent nuclear deal. It is suspected that nuclear explosive tests have previously taken place at Parchin.

The Guardian reports that Israel’s Transport Minister Israel Katz confirmed there will not be a no-fly zone for several hours over the venue for the upcoming wedding of supermodel Bar Refaeli. Israeli media reports had suggested that Refaeli arranged such restrictions to accommodate drones for photography, a hot air balloon and a helicopter in which she would arrive at the venue.

In the Israeli media, the ongoing low-level violence in Jerusalem and the West Bank continues to be the dominant item. Israel Hayom leads with an attack which took place last night in the southern West Bank on a family driving to Jerusalem. They were reportedly faced with a group of around 15 masked Palestinians who pelted the cars with cinderblocks and rocks. Although the vehicles were damaged, the family remarkably escaped unharmed. The incident is also covered prominently in Yediot Ahronot, while Israel Radio news covers additional rock-throwing incidents yesterday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Moscow today to meet with Russia’s President Putin is covered extensively by Haaretz and Israel Hayom. In a rare move, Netanyahu will be accompanied by the IDF Chief of Staff and other leading military and security figures, underscoring the main purpose of the meeting. Netanyahu will reportedly seek clarifications over Russia’s recent deployment in Syria and emphasize the danger of weapons reaching Hezbollah, while working out how to avoid what Yediot Ahronot calls “nightmarish scenarios, such as one in which IAF and Russian Air Force jets engage in air-to-air combat, or an erroneous IAF strike on Russia ground forces.”

Israel Radio news reports that a rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip last night into southern Israel. Although the rocket landed in open space in the Hof Ashkelon region without causing damage, it follows rocket fire in Friday night which saw property damaged in Sderot and residents treated for shock.