The BBC and Guardian report that the Israeli webcast of the first Eurovision semi-final was hacked to show faked explosions in the host city Tel Aviv. The BBC reports that viewers saw a warning about a fictitious attack on the city, accompanied by an animated video and the sound of air raid sirens. The Israeli national broadcaster, Kan, blamed Hamas for the interruption, though the Palestinian terrorist group has not commented. The TV broadcast was not affected. Viewers who tuned in to the Kan webcast saw the warning, “risk of missile attack. Please take shelter,” under a fake logo of the Israeli army and the sound of a rocket-warning siren. Aerial images showed simulated explosions at the site.

In the Independent, Bel Trew writes: “Tourists come face-to-face with Eurovision’s darker side: ‘no pride in apartheid’”. Trew meets the activists, “highlighting the controversies behind the competition”.

The Guardian reports that: “Israeli soldiers have shot 16 people at the Gaza frontier on a day of rallies commemorating the mass displacement of Palestinians during the war that led to Israel’s creation in 1948.” The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said about 10,000 “rioters and demonstrators” gathered at several locations along the frontier. “The rioters are setting tyres on fire and hurling rocks. A number of explosive devices have been hurled within the Gaza Strip, and a number of attempts have been made to approach the security fence,” it said.

The Independent reports that Hamas officials have said they ordered protesters away from border fences and urged restraint on the annual commemoration of Nakba Day, to protect a tense truce with Israel that is hosting thousands of foreigners for the Eurovision Song Contest. Hazem Qassem, a spokesman for Hamas, told the Independent that they wanted to stop any actions that could threaten the Egyptian-brokered ceasefire “as long as the Israelis respected it”.

The Independent reports that 20,000 people pledged to deactivate their Airbnb accounts for a global campaign protesting the company’s decision to re-introduce property listings in Israeli West Bank settlements.  The #DeactivateAirbnb action was timed to coincide with Nakba Day on Wednesday.

The Times and Reuters report that the Polish ambassador to Israel was assaulted in Tel Aviv as a row between the two countries escalates over antisemitism and compensation for Jews in Poland before the Holocaust. The Times reports that police said Arik Lederman, whose family came from Poland, blocked the car of Marek Magierowski, the ambassador. He banged on its roof, opened the door and spat on him. Lederman, who was arrested, said that he had been at the embassy to inquire about property in Poland owned by his family members who had survived the Holocaust. He claimed that he was the subject of an antisemitic slur. The Polish government disputed some of Lederman’s account, however. The embassy said that Lederman had demanded to speak to someone “about Polish antisemitism” and security staff asked him to wait. Mateusz Morawiecki, the Prime Minister of Poland, described the spitting incident as “a racist attack” and a “xenophobic act of aggression”.

The BBC, Independent and Financial Times report that the US State Department has ordered the departure of “non-emergency employees” from Iraq, amid rising tensions between the US and Iraq’s neighbour Iran. The BBC  reports that staff at the embassy in Baghdad and the consulate in Irbil must leave as soon as possible on commercial transport. Meanwhile, the German and Dutch armies have suspended training Iraqi soldiers. The US military said on Tuesday that the threat level in the Middle East had been raised in response to intelligence about Iran-backed forces in the region. It contradicted a British general who had said there was “no increased threat”. Chris Ghika, deputy commander of the global coalition against ISIS, had told reporters that measures in place to protect US forces and their allies from Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria were “completely satisfactory”. President Donald Trump took to Twitter to dismiss rumours of White House infighting over his “strong policy in the Middle East”. He added: “I am sure that Iran will want to talk soon.”

The Times reports that the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) backed a British Major-General who dismissed warnings from the Pentagon that Iranian-linked groups were preparing to launch attacks against western targets in the Middle East. He said that measures to protect US and coalition forces from Tehran-backed militias were “completely satisfactory” and his remarks prompted a rare public rebuke from the Pentagon. The MoD acknowledged that there had always been threats to coalition forces from Iran, but declined to say that the threat was growing. “Major-General Ghika speaks as a military officer in the US-led coalition focused on the fight against Daesh [ISIS] in Iraq and Syria,” an MoD statement said. “His comments are based on the day-to-day military operations and his sole focus is the enduring defeat of Daesh. He made clear in the Pentagon briefing that ‘there are a range of threats to American and coalition forces in this part of the world. There always have been, that is why we have a very robust range of force protection measures.’ ” It added: “The UK has long been clear about our concerns over Iran’s destabilising behaviour in the region.” Officials from the Foreign Office are understood to be angry at the MoD’s handling of the situation. The row raises questions about the extent of intelligence that the US has shared with Britain about the alleged threat from Iran. Israeli media reported that the warnings were passed on by Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency.

In the Times, Catherine Philp writes that the “UK and US are shoulder to shoulder but not eye to eye”. On a visit to London last week the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, stood alongside Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt and insisted: “We share the same perception of the Iranian threat.” As the row over the different British and American threat assessments show, that is not necessarily true. It is the most concrete foreign policy difference between the US and the UK in years, says Philp, but it has been a difference of opinion, not of intelligence. It is still unclear exactly what American warnings of a “critical threat” refer to, other than an elevated risk to US and allied forces in Iraq and Syria.

On the BBC, Paul Adams examines the issues behind the rising tensions between the US and Iran. US President Donald Trump, he says, has always hated the Iran nuclear deal. Now Iran is threatening to stop complying with some of its obligations under the agreement. Adams asked how we arrived at this point, and whether the deal is crumbling.

In the Guardian, Ben Armbruster asks: “Is John Bolton the most dangerous man in the world?” The US is close to a war with Iran than it has been since the Bush years, says Armbruster, and Bolton is largely to blame.

The Guardian leads with an editorial on the prosecution of war crimes, arguing, “no one is above the law” and the new UK Defence Secretary, Penny Mourdaunt ought to understand that the rule of law can only be upheld by observing it. With a speech on Wednesday, Mourdaunt promised to protect soldiers from “lawfare” – a pejorative term coined to describe the use of a country’s legal system to undermine its defences. Mordaunt said she would seek a presumption against prosecution for offences committed in conflict more than a decade ago – covering the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; and seek a future opt-out of the European convention on human rights. In Yemen the government can be credited with brokering a ceasefire. Yet it issues export licences to British companies who arm the perpetrators of possible war crimes. Riyadh sees commercial interest trump human rights. How does Britain stand up for the rule of law when it bends it the moment its own interests and soldiers are at stake? The problem is not a lack of legal protections, it is their corrosion by double standards and non-enforcement.

The Financial Times reports that Saudi Arabia has approved a new residency scheme to attract skilled foreign labour to help implement an economic reform programme aimed at reducing the kingdom’s dependence on oil. The law, which was passed by the consultive Shura Council this month and announced by the cabinet on Tuesday, would offer two types of residencies: one would be permanent while the other could be renewed annually. The government will publish details of the new rules within 90 days. “Our aim is to attract innovators from across the world to live and work in Saudi Arabia — and this reform will play a significant role in doing so,” Ibrahim Al Omar, governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, said. “These investors and entrepreneurs will help to drive private sector growth, which is needed to realise the ambitious goals set out in Saudi Vision 2030.”

The Guardian reports that renewed clashes broke out between Houthi rebel fighters and Saudi-backed pro-government forces in the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah on Wednesday, breaching a ceasefire and potentially threatening a withdrawal agreement intended to pave the way for wider peace talks. The fighting prompted the UN’s special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, to warn that peace could yet be a way off, despite earlier signs the pullout by Houthi forces was going to plan.

All of the Israeli papers discuss problems in coalition negotiations. Haaretz reports that Kulanu party leader Moshe Kahlon said he will not serve as finance minister in a government based on only 60 of the Knesset’s 120 members, i.e without Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu party. Kahlon says such a government would be vulnerable to extortion, a difficult position particularly for the cabinet member tasked with protecting the state coffers against the demands of the parties in the governing coalition. Kahlon said he would sign a coalition agreement only after he saw all the financial commitments made to the other partners, and only after he reached an agreement with Benjamin Netanyahu on what would be awarded.

Israel Hayom quotes Netanyahu as saying there is no budget for all the parties’ demands. Netanyahu said that the coalition negotiations had become impossible and that almost all the factions were making demands that were at odds with one another. He said that the parties’ demands might be reasonable if Israel had a budget like that of the US, but that was not the situation and we could not cause Israel’s economy to collapse.

Yediot Ahronoth quotes senior Likud figures saying that Prime Minister Netanyahu is seriously considering the possibility of forming a temporary coalition of 60 MKs without Yisrael Beiteinu, because of difficulties in the negotiations between the Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu. That scenario will only be viable if Lieberman either abstains or is absent from the Knesset vote to confirm the government. If Lieberman decides to vote against, there will be no majority for the government. The prevailing assessment within the Likud is that Lieberman will not vote against the new government so as to avoid a situation in which he is accused of preventing a right-wing government from being formed. The paper adds that with less than two weeks left to complete the coalition negotiations between the Likud and the five designated coalition parties, no significant progress has yet been made in the talks. The party that is closest to signing a coalition agreement with the Likud is Shas. Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri met yesterday with Netanyahu and an agreement will be reached soon. Shas is not opposed to the military conscription law and it is likely to receive three ministerial portfolios, including an expanded interior ministry.

Maariv reports on criticism from several politicians regarding Netanyahu’s plan to propose a law to prevent him from being prosecuted. In a briefing to Likud members, Netanyahu reportedly said that he would deal with his legal affairs after his term in office finished. The report drew angry reactions from many opposition politicians. A Likud source who spoke with Maariv said that the legislative process would unfold as follows: “Netanyahu will introduce the immunity bill [actually, an amendment to the current immunity law] at lightning speed. On the surface of things, he won’t be the person who introduces the bill, but will do so by means of a proxy from within the Likud.” MK Miki Zohar has already said that his plans to introduce an amendment to the immunity law were his own personal initiative and that he had not consulted with Netanyahu on the issue. In addition to amending the immunity law, the Likud intends to introduce legislation to create an override clause at the same time in order to prevent the High Court of Justice from disqualifying the amendment that is designed to grant Netanyahu immunity from prosecution.

Yossi Yehoshua in Yediot Ahronoth writes about yesterday’s Nakba Day riots. “The multitudes of demonstrators that Hamas had hoped would turn out, ultimately failed to materialise. Only 10,000 Palestinians gathered along the length of the Gaza border yesterday for the Nakba Day protests. While the demonstrations passed without any significant friction with IDF troops, incendiary balloons that were sent aloft resulted in nine fires in the Sdot Negev Regional Council, the Beeri Forest and in the Eshkol and Shaar Hanegev Regional Councils. Hamas had hoped to induce several tens of thousands of people to demonstrate at the border, but Hamas’s calls on the Gazan public to come out to protest went unheeded by many.” He concludes that: “The prevailing assessment within the IDF is that Hamas hasn’t yet decided whether it wants to focus on the welfare of Gaza’s residents and to make a truce arrangement with Israel, or whether it wants to allow for a resumption of terrorist activity, even at a destructive cost for the Gaza Strip. IDF officials believe that the fact that Hamas tried to induce demonstrators to make their way to the fence yesterday but, at the same time, also tried to rein them in, demonstrates that Hamas hasn’t yet decided on which course of action to take.”