The Times and Independent both cover the recent controversial comments by US Presidential candidate Donald Trump and mention that he is set to visit Israel on 28 December and meet Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite a statement yesterday in which Netanyahu said he “rejects” Trump’s suggestion that Muslims be denied entry to the United States. The Guardian online covers Trump’s upcoming visit in more detail, outlining the objections of a number of Knesset members, but noting that Netanyahu is likely to go ahead with the meeting having previously stated that he will meet any US Presidential candidate visiting Israel to avoid appearing partisan.

The Financial Times online includes a feature on Hebron “where violence is fast becoming an ugly, grinding routine.” The article points out that although the current wave of violence, which has killed at least 21 Israelis since the start of October, has largely subsided in Jerusalem where the attacks began, Hebron remains an epicentre for tension and violence. Two Israelis were stabbed by a Palestinian in Hebron just yesterday, the latest in several knife attacks in the city during the last week.

The Guardian includes a lengthy piece by Jonathan Freedland recalling the premiere in Jerusalem in 1986 of the classic documentary “Shoah” by Claude Lanzmann, which focuses relentlessly on some of the most painful testimony from Holocaust survivors. Freedland examines the impact of such a film on aspects of Israeli society.

The Telegraph online covers the reports earlier this week that Iran recently tested ballistic missiles in contravention of United Nations Security Council resolutions. The article suggests that the missile tests are being encouraged by conservative elements in Iran to discredit President Rouhani in front of the international community.

The Guardian online says that Prime Minister David Cameron spoke with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and the two leaders agreed to fight together against ISIS, but Cameron made clear UK opposition to President Assad’s participation in Syria’s future. In Syria itself, the online editions of the Guardian, Independent, Times and Telegraph all report that hundreds of civilians and rebel fighters have been evacuated from the last opposition-held neighbourhood in Homs, following a deal with the Syrian government to grant them safe passage, overseen by the United Nations.

In the Israeli media, Yediot Ahronot and Israel Hayom both lead with the latest terror attacks yesterday, which saw four Israelis injured in two separate incidents. Yesterday evening, an Israeli couple driving in the West Bank came under fire, with at least twenty bullets fired at their car. Both were injured and taken to hospital but are not in a life-threatening condition. Meanwhile, an IDF soldier and an Israeli civilian were both injured in a knife attack in Hebron. Israel Radio news also reports that a potential attack was averted in the northern Israeli city of Afula, after three Palestinian males from Jenin were arrested carrying large knives.

The top story in Maariv, which is also covered prominently in Yediot Ahronot and elsewhere, is the convivial meeting yesterday between Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin and US President Barack Obama. Both underscored the importance and enduring strength of the US-Israel relationship and agreed that it is important that steps continue to be taken towards peace, even though a diplomatic resolution appears a distant prospect.

Meanwhile, Maariv, Yediot Ahronot and Israel Radio also cover the confirmation that US Presidential candidate Donald Trump is set to visit Israel later this month and meet Prime Minister Netanyahu. Yediot Ahronot focuses on Netanyahu’s statement last night which emphasised that he rejects Trump’s recent controversial comments. Nonetheless, Maariv says that at least 37 Knesset members have now signed a petition demanding that Netanyahu postpone the meeting until Trump retracts his comments.

The top story in Haaretz, also highlighted in Israel Hayom is the annual poverty report published yesterday by the National Insurance Institute, which found that there had been a slight increase in the number of Israeli poor during the past year, including almost one in three children. Writing in Yediot Ahronot, Sever Plocker emphasises that much of the poverty lies in Israel’s Arab and Jewish ultra-Orthodox communities and that the government would be wise to better acknowledge this.