There is widespread coverage of US President Obama’s visit to Israel and the region, focusing heavily on his keynote speech yesterday to an audience of Israeli students in Jerusalem. The Guardian says it was a speech full of vision, but short on detail as Obama called on Israel’s young generation to make peace a reality. Ian Black compliments Obama’s impressive oratory, while guest columnist, Haaretz’s Aluf Benn says that Obama has stirred Israeli hearts. Another piece focuses on Palestinian disappointment over Obama’s stance on Israel’s West Bank settlements. The Telegraph contrasts Obama’s impressive address in Jerusalem, which Robert Tait says exuded “all the eloquence of an Old Testament prophet” with a “stumbling performance” earlier in the day at a press conference in Ramallah alongside Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. It is a contrast also noted in the Financial Times, which refers to a “stilted” atmosphere in Ramallah. Back in the Telegraph, Con Coughlin wonders if Obama’s re-engagement in the Middle East has come too late. The Times emphasises Obama’s direct appeal and connection to the Israeli public, also noted in The Sun. The Independent highlights Obama’s conviction that a Palestinian state is the only way for Israel to “endure and thrive,” while also noting differences between Obama and Abbas on the necessity for an Israeli settlement freeze.

In their coverage of Obama’s visit, the Independent i, Metro and the Evening Standard all devote space to rockets which were fired yesterday at the southern Israeli town of Sderot by an armed group in the Gaza Strip. Two rockets landed in Sderot, one caused damage to a residential property. No casualties were reported. All reports emphasise that the rocket attack was timed to send a message to Obama.

The Times covers the conviction in a Cypriot court yesterday of a Hezbollah member who had been spying on Israeli tourists just weeks before a bus bomb killed five Israeli holidaymakers in a Bulgarian resort. The article says that the conviction will increase calls for the European Union to designate Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation.

Meanwhile, the Financial Times, Metro and the Times report on comments made yesterday by Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, who threatened to destroy the cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa, if Israel launches a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.

In Syria, the online editions of the Guardian and Telegraph say that a suicide bomb in a Damascus mosque yesterday killed forty one people, including a high-profile Sunni preacher, viewed as a key ally of President Assad.

The Israeli media is once again flooded with coverage of Obama’s visit. The headline “You are not alone,” in reference to Obama’s clear pledge of support for Israel during his speech yesterday, dominates the front pages of Yediot Ahronot, Israel Hayom and Sof Hashavua. Maariv’s headline opts to focus on Obama’s insistence that “The Palestinians must recognise that Israel is a Jewish state.” Meanwhile, Haaretz paraphrases Obama’s direct appeal to the Israeli people to “Push your leaders to make peace.” In the commentary surrounding Obama’s speech, Nahum Barnea writes in Yediot Ahronot that “Obama invested all his rhetorical skill” and as a result he “conquered the audience by storm.” However, Barnea concludes by saying that although Obama left Israelis with “a wonderful speech,” he leaves with “the same impasse that existed before his arrival.” In Maariv, Shalom Yerushalmi points out that Obama shifted the focus of his visit to the peace process, when Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu would likely have preferred the spotlight to be on Iran. Yerushalmi ponders, “Who knows?… maybe peace protests will yet flood the streets.”