Gaza truce destabilised as three Qassam rockets hit Sderot

In the UK and international media today, several papers note that Qassam rockets were fired yesterday into the Israeli town of Sderot, violating the Gaza ceasefire deal that went into place last Thursday. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack saying that it was in response to an IDF operation carried out recently against its members in the West Bank. The news that French President Nicolas Sarkozy's departure from Israel was rushed yesterday as an Israeli police officer shot himself during the closing ceremony at Ben Gurion Airport is also widely reported. The Guardian reports that an Israeli national security adviser yesterday claimed that Syria is planning to supply Iran with nuclear fuel for its nuclear weapons programme. The paper also carries an opinion piece by Jonathan Freedland on the need for world action against the Iranian nuclear threat. Meanwhile, the Times notes that more than £80 million was pledged yesterday on the first day of a donors conference in Berlin aimed at raising funds for the Palestinian police forces. The Daily Telegraph notes that the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini has spoken out against the latest EU sanctions imposed on Tehran, calling it illegal and damaging towards efforts to halt Iran's nuclear programme. The paper also notes that Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, will make a surprise visit to Israel later this week to meet with IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi.

In the Israeli press, the papers note that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defence Minister Ehud Barak met yesterday to discuss a response to Qassam rockets that were fired into southern Israel yesterday. All papers and online media sources also report that the Israeli Labour and Kadima parties reached an agreement last night which would set a date for Kadima primaries and will block efforts to dissolve the Knesset. The papers also note that a police officer shot himself yesterday during the departure of French President Nicolas Sarkozy at Ben Gurion Airport, causing security officials to stop the ceremony. Haaretz and the Jerusalem Post report that PM Olmert will bring the issue of a prisoner exchange deal with Hezbollah to the cabinet for a vote on Sunday. The Jerusalem Post notes that Israeli ambassador to Ireland Zion Evrony condemned the decision by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions to call for a boycott and disinvestment against Israel. Haaretz and Ynetnews notes that Professor Gabriela Shalev has been nominated as Israel's new ambassador to the UN replacing Dan Gillerman whose five-year term ends in a few weeks.

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