The Times, Independent i, Evening Standard and the online edition of the Guardian all report that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday called for calm at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and gave assurances to Jordan’s King Abdullah that he does not support any change to the status quo at the holy site. The Temple Mount has been a focus of violence and tension during recent weeks which has seen serious unrest throughout Jerusalem.

In the Telegraph, David Blair explains the complexity surrounding Jerusalem’s holy sites and their integral role in the Israel-Palestinian conflict. He also says that the current unrest is not comparable to the conditions of the Second Intifada in 2000, as Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas does not support such an uprising unlike his predecessor Yasser Arafat and because Israel’s West Bank security barrier makes it immeasurably more difficult for deadly terror attacks to be carried out. In the Independent, Ben Lynfield also suggests that Abbas opposes the wider unrest of an Intifada. There is also an analysis in the Telegraph online, explaining what characterises an Intifada.

The Telegraph online also reports that a Palestinian man turned himself in to police yesterday as the prime suspect wanted for ramming his vehicle into a group of three Israeli soldiers in the Gush Etzion region of the West Bank on Wednesday night. The same report quotes Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, saying he is “deeply concerned by the growing tensions” in the area.

The Guardian reports that that the International Criminal Court in the Hague has decided not to investigate Israel over the Mavi Marmara incident in 2010. Nine Turkish citizens were killed aboard the Gaza-bound vessel when they resisted attempts by Israeli commandos to board the ship.

The online editions of the Times and Financial Times both report that US-led air strikes in Syria are now targeting the al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nusra Front, in addition to ISIS. However, this would appear to have brought al-Nusra and ISIS closer together, potentially isolating the Western-backed opposition groups in Syria. As a result, Ian Black in the Guardian says that US strategy in Syria is muddled and is in fact benefitting President Assad, by dividing and weakening opposition forces. Meanwhile, the online editions of the Guardian and Telegraph both report that police have arrested a man in Derry, Northern Ireland suspected of fighting with Islamist groups in Syria.

The Telegraph and Guardian both cover a Wall St Journal report which claims that US President Obama sent a secret letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, suggesting that cooperation against ISIS would be dependent on the progress of talks over Tehran’s nuclear development.

In the Israeli media this morning, the ongoing tension in Jerusalem continues to make headlines. Israel Hayom focuses on Prime Minister Netanyahu’s efforts to calm tensions. Maariv leads with a report that Jerusalem residents feel that the situation in the city has “regressed by ten years.” Yediot Ahronot’s front-page headline proclaims “Day of trial on the Temple Mount” with Friday prayers a likely flashpoint for violence. Israel Radio news says that there will be a large police deployment and entry to the site will be restricted to Muslim men over the age of 35, due to intelligence that youths are planning violence. A Maariv poll indicates that 81 per cent of respondents are unhappy at the government’s handling of the unrest in Jerusalem.

Another major item, which is the lead story in Israel Hayom is an ammonia leak at a factory in Emek Hefer which sparked a huge fire and subsequently killed a fireman. It is also a major story in Yediot Ahronot and Maariv.

Meanwhile, Israel Radio news says that a rocket warning siren sounded this morning in the Eshkol region of southern Israel. However, it appears to be have been a false alarm and the rocket may have landed in the Gaza Strip itself.