The swearing in yesterday of the new Palestinian unity government is covered by the Guardian, Telegraph, Independent and the online edition of the Financial Times. All mention the response of Israel’s government, which urged the international community not to cooperate with a government backed by Hamas, classified as a terror group by the United States and European Union. However, the US State Department indicated that it would work with the new Palestinian government for the time being. The Independent i notes that senior Hamas leader Ismael Haniyeh yesterday reiterated that Hamas reserves the right to engage in “resistance by all forms” despite the unity deal.

An editorial in the Telegraph says that the unity agreement “puts paid to any lingering hopes” of an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement for now and that the only way to move forward is for Hamas to recognise Israel and renounce violence.

The Guardian online includes a feature on a fair-trade association in Israel which is selling locally-produced olive oil and investing the profits in educating women and building bridges between communities.

The Telegraph business section and the Financial Times both report that an agency of the Department for Business is investigating the security firm G4S over its supply of security equipment such as screens to Israeli forces in the West Bank.

The Independent i reports that the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said that although Iran is “substantively” cooperating with its probe into Tehran’s nuclear programme, it is too early to tell whether real progress will be made. Meanwhile, in Iran itself, the Times online says that a prominent opposition activist has been executed in a Tehran prison.

The Guardian, Times and Telegraph all report that presidential elections will take place in Syria today, in a poll condemned by much of the international community as farcical. Most articles say that Syrians face pressure to vote as a display of loyalty to President Assad, but fear a bloodbath with opposition groups threatening to carry out attacks on polling stations. The Financial Times online reports that Iran views the election as a victory for its own hegemony over Syria.

Meanwhile, the Guardian online reports that Prime Minister David Cameron has described the terror threat to the UK emanating from jihadists returning from Syria as greater than the threat from those in Afghanistan or Pakistan.

In the Israeli media, the top story is the fallout from the swearing in of the new Palestinian unity government, in particular the response of the United States, which indicated that it will cooperate with the new Palestinian government for the time being, despite the fact that it is backed by Hamas. It is the top story in Yediot Ahronot, Maariv, Haaretz and Israel Hayom which respectively describe Israel as being “disappointed,” having “fierce differences” and being “furious” with the American reaction. Israel Radio news reports that Israel’s Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer, issued a statement which implied criticism of the US position. Writing in Yediot Ahronot, Ben-Dror Yemini expresses his doubts over the strength of Hamas support for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Maariv reports on a speech delivered by Foreign Minister Avigdor Leiberman, who yesterday outlined his vision for the region, saying that, “The dividing line today is moderates versus extremists, and when I talk about a regional arrangement, that means full diplomatic relations with the Persian Gulf states.”

Israel Radio news reports that a Palestinian man opened fire on Israeli security forces at the Tapuah Junction in the West Bank last night, lightly wounding a Border Police officer. IDF and Border Police personnel returned fire, killing the assailant at the scene. The incident came just days after Israeli security forces stopped a Palestinian suicide bomber at the same location.