The main item of Israel-related coverage in the UK media today (28/12) and on Tuesday (27/12) is the rally that took place yesterday in the town of Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem against harassment of women by radical ultra-Orthodox elements in Israel. The Guardian, Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph, Times, Independent, Financial Times, Scotsman, Reuters and BBC Online note the rally and the issues underlying it. In other items, the Daily Telegraph, Times, Guardian, Independent, Scotsman, Reuters and BBC Online note the arrival of Arab monitors in Syria, amid the continued bloody crackdown on protests there.  The Daily Telegraph notes that Iranian prosecutors are to seek the death penalty for an Iranian-American detained in Iran and accused of spying for the CIA. The Independent has additional articles on an EU report into the plight of Israel’s Arab citizens and a discussion in the Israel Knesset of the Turkish mass killings of Armenians in 1915.  The Financial Times and Reuters note an Iranian threat to block the Straits of Hormuz if sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector are approved.  The Sun, Daily Mail, Daily Mirror and Daily Star note a call by Pope Benedict XVI for the resumption of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians.

In the Israeli media today (28/12) there is extensive coverage of the demonstration against ultra-Orthodox harassment of women in Beit Shemesh. All papers also focus on two Israeli airstrikes on targets in Gaza yesterday. Haaretz reports on the Iranian threat to close the Straits of Hormuz if sanctions target the Iranian oil sector.  The Jerusalem Post has a piece on IDF preparations to counter a possible future threat from Cairo. Israel Hayom notes an indictment filed against Israeli-Arab Knesset Member Said Naffa for visiting an enemy state and contacting foreign agents (Naffa visited Syria in 2007.) Maariv notes the arrest of an ultra-Orthodox man in Jerusalem after he abused a female soldier who refused to move to the back of a bus on which they were both travelling.

Over the Christmas weekend (24/25/26/12), the Guardian had a piece on the plight of Christians in Gaza on Friday, and noted a cleric’s reference to the suffering of Palestinians in his Christmas speech on Monday. The Daily Telegraph on Monday noted PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to engage in peace talks with the PA if Hamas joins the government. The Independent on Monday noted a planned demonstration by secular Israelis in Beit Shemesh following reports of harassment by ultra-Orthodox Jews in the area. The Independent on Saturday reported on the large crowds attending mass in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. The Independent on Saturday also reported on a breakthrough agreement between Fatah, Hamas and other groups that could unify all Palestinian factions under a single political umbrella. The Times on Saturday had reports on an Israeli campaign promoting Nazareth as an alternative destination for Christian tourism to Bethlehem, and Israeli settlements in the Bethlehem area. The Independent on Saturday noted plans to extend the security Barrier in the area between Gilo and Beit Jala on the southern edge of Jerusalem.