Several publications continue to cover the apology issued to Turkey on Friday by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over an incident in 2010 which resulted in the deaths of nine Turkish activists aboard the Gaza-bound Turkish protest vessel the Mavi Marmara after Israeli commandos boarded the boat. The apology is the first step towards normalising relations between the two countries. The Financial Times provides an overview of what the apology may mean for Israeli-Turkish cooperation on Syria and energy cooperation in the region, while the Independent i also reports on the diplomatic development. The Telegraph focuses on comments made yesterday by Israel’s National Security Advisor, Ya’akov Amidror who said that although the process towards normalising Israel-Turkey relations includes relaxing the blockade of the Gaza Strip, this would be dependent on whether rocket fire from the Gaza Strip towards Israeli population centres ceases. The Times reports that the Iranian government has accused the United States of playing “a new game” to isolate Tehran, by brokering the Israeli apology to Turkey.

The Times and the online editions of the Telegraph and Financial Times report that the Israeli army fired a retaliatory missile at a Syrian army position yesterday after two instances of cross-border fire in the Golan Heights region appeared to target Israeli soldiers along the border between the two countries over the weekend. The Times says that Syrian opposition forces, including Islamist groups, have captured a large swath of territory near Israel’s border.

Meanwhile, the online editions of the Guardian, Financial Times and Independent cover the resignation of Moaz al-Khatib as leader of the Syrian National Coalition yesterday. Although al-Khatib’s reasons for resigning remain vague, he is considered a powerful moderate figure in the opposition movement. The online editions of the Guardian and Independent report that US Secretary of State John Kerry, has asked the Iraqi government to do more to prevent Iranian arms shipments from reaching Syrian government forces.

The Guardian online says that Australian and German media reports claim that Israel’s ‘Prisoner X’ Ben Zygier, an Australian-born Israeli intelligence agent who committed suicide in Israeli detention, may have unwittingly revealed the names of Hezbollah double agents. The Telegraph online includes a feature that says that Israeli wine production in the West Bank is a new front in attempts to boycott West Bank goods.

In the Israeli media, Yediot Ahronot and Maariv devote their front page headline to reports that Finance Minister Yair Lapid and Prime Minister Netanyahu have agreed a series of significant budget cuts in order to reduce what Lapid described over the weekend as a “monstrous” deficit. Yediot Ahronot says that austerity measures are on the way, while Maariv says that Lapid has instructed ministry officials to find ways to save almost £3billion. Israel Hayom focuses on claims that much of the proposed savings will come from cuts to the country’s defence budget.

Meanwhile, the lead story in Israel Hayom reports that Syria’s President Assad has lost control of the region bordering Israel on the Golan Heights. Maariv highlights the shooting from Syria over the weekend that targeted IDF patrols near the border, while Haaretz says that the IDF is focusing its activities on the country’s northern sector adjacent to both Syria and Lebanon.

Yediot Ahronot and Haaretz also give prominent attention to the apology issued by Prime Minister Netanyahu to his Turkish counterpart, Recip Tayyip Erdogan on Friday. Both publications emphasise that Erdogan has said relations will only be normalised between Israel and Turkey when compensation has been agreed between the two countries for the incident that led to the deaths of nine Turkish citizens in 2010.