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Media Summary

02/10/2015

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The Telegraph and the online edition of the Guardian both cover a deadly shooting in the West Bank yesterday evening which killed an Israeli couple driving near the settlement of Itamar, in front of four of their children, all of whom survived the attack. The shooting is the latest in a series of attacks on Israeli civilians and security personnel in the West Bank and Jerusalem. Although Hamas stopped short of taking responsibility for yesterday’s shooting, the terror group described the attack as “heroic.” The IDF increased its presence in the area in order to find the assailants.

The Guardian and the online edition of the Financial Times both report Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) yesterday evening. His address was noted for a dramatic 45 second silence, which Netanyahu used to emphasise global silence on Iranian pledges to destroy Israel. The Guardian also highlights Netanyahu’s assertion that the twin terror threats of ISIS and Iran will draw Israel and moderate Arab powers closer together. The Financial Times online notes Netanyahu’s offer to resume peace talks with the Palestinian Authority without preconditions.

The Guardian online includes a profile of Israel’s incoming Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon. It highlights his stance until now on a range of issues, which have often been considered more hard-line than that of his Likud Party’s leadership. The article speculates whether Danon will reign in his characteristically blunt style as a diplomat.

The Telegraph reports that seven Arab Israeli citizens were yesterday charged with planning attacks in northern Israel on behalf of ISIS. Although several Arab Israelis are thought to have joined ISIS in Syria, this is the first time that an ISIS plot to attack Israelis has been uncovered.

The Financial Times includes a feature on the complex demography and politics surrounding the Old City of Jerusalem and in particular how it impacts those living there.

The Guardian and Financial Times report a second wave of Russian air strikes in Syria yesterday, which appeared to include attacks on non-ISIS opposition groups. The Times says that the sorties included a hit on US-trained rebel fighters and that Iran is sending hundreds of fresh troops to fight alongside President Assad’s army.

Writing in the Times, Catherine Philip says that Russian intervention is likely to weaken Iranian influence in Syria. In the Telegraph, David Blair warns that Moscow’s Syria campaign may drive more Sunnis towards ISIS. Meanwhile, Kim Sengupta in the Independent says that the West has few options in dealing with Russia’s deployment in Syria.

In the Israeli media, the lead item in Yediot Ahronot, Maariv, Haaretz and Israel Hayom is the murder of an Israeli couple, Eitam and Na’ama Henkin as they drove four of their six children in the West Bank yesterday evening. All reports describe the horror of the attack, detailing that a car sped up beside the Henkins and opened fire. Israel Radio news says that a leader of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction described the murder as a natural reaction to the crimes of settlers.

Yediot Ahronot, Maariv and Israel Hayom also prominently cover Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech at the UNGA yesterday. Israel Hayom says that Netanyahu “admonished” the world over Iran in what Maariv calls the “speech of silence.” However, Orly Azulai in Yediot Ahronot writes that by focusing on Iran, Netanyahu “sounded like yesterday’s man.” Also in Yediot Ahronot, Shimon Shiffer says that after applause for his speech recedes, “Netanyahu will be called upon to find a solution to the displays of violence to which the Palestinian side is subjecting us.”

Haaretz covers the increasing Russian air strikes in Syria, while Israel Hayom says that additional Iranian soldiers are preparing to join the fight in Syria.