The BBC leads this morning with the story of the Swedish-Iranian doctor who was arrested by Iran’s intelligence service in 2016 and later sentenced to death, Iran says, for passing on classified information to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency to help them assassinate Iranian nuclear scientists. His lawyer said his confession was obtained by torture.

Gaza is on the brink of its worst health crisis in history, says the Independent. With no more PCR tests and only 20 per cent of ICU beds available, health officials warn they will be unable to contain COVID without urgent international help.

In The Times, Roger Boyes writes that the remote-control murder of an Iranian nuclear scientist shows the need for a high-tech war rulebook. He says, “The Iranian version, though, is plausible. Armies already have automatic firing mechanisms; it’s not difficult to write codes that shoot guns. Whatever the facts of the operation, high-tech war is changing the assassin’s art.”

The Telegraph leads with the new Emirate co-owner of Israeli football club Beitar Jerusalem, which is describes as “a controversial club which has never signed an Arab player and has battled with a reputation for anti-Muslim racism”. The report says the club is hugely popular among Israeli right-wingers and the far-right football fan group La Familia, which is known to chant racist and anti-Muslim slogans. The group, which was founded in 2005, has been repeatedly condemned by senior Israeli politicians, including the president and the prime minister.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has rejected allegations that he sent a hit squad to kill an exiled Saudi former intelligence officer, according to a report in the BBC. In a lawsuit filed in a US court, Saad al-Jabri has claimed that the assassination attempt took place in Canada, where he fled three years ago. Al-Jabri accuses the crown prince of attempting to murder him because he possessed “damning information” about the Kingdom’s alleged corruption and for overseeing a team of personal mercenaries labelled the Tiger Squad.

A woman who crossed eight borders, two deserts and one sea to get to the UK to claim asylum has spoken for the first time about her incredible journey. In a report by The Guardian, the 29-year-old, who calls herself Noor, escaped from Yemen when her life was threatened and travelled alone with only smugglers and other desperate migrants for company en route.

The Independent reports that coronavirus has severely raised unemployment numbers among women in Jordan, with 250,000 female-headed households (out of two million total households in Jordan) facing economic hardship.

The first shipment of COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Israel this morning, according to Yediot Ahronot. The shipment, which contains approximately 1,000 doses of the vaccine produced by Pfizer, arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport, with another half-million doses expected to arrive tomorrow and Friday and one million more next week. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to be the first to be vaccinated. He said, “I spoke yesterday with Pfizer CEO Albert Borla for the eighth time, and I want to thank him and his team.” Netanyahu added that “we see the end and we still need to keep the rules. I believe in this vaccine and expect to receive the appropriate approvals in the coming days.” The Health Ministry has instructed national health funds to prepare to inoculate the public starting 20 December. Hospitals are expected to begin vaccinating their employees prior to that date.

Channel 12 News reports that last night the coronavirus cabinet approved the opening of malls, street shops, open-air markets, and museums, beginning this morning. The decision came after potential legal challenges forced the cabinet to scrap the night-time curfew idea. Instead, Health Ministry officials recommended stricter regulations, including closing stores nationwide and educational institutions in red cities.

In the Israeli media, news is dominated by the unexpected announcement from Gideon Saar to quit the Likud and form a new party that would run against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In Yediot Ahronot, Sima Kadmon writes: “Saar said things about Netanyahu that we haven’t heard from even the prime minister’s most bitter enemies. The accusations were unbearably heavy: loyalty to ideology has been replaced with a personality cult; the party has become a tool in the service of the prime minister’s interests, including those that pertain to his trial on criminal charges. Saar was unsparing in his criticism of his fellow party members, citing the unacceptable culture of shaming and smearing that has taken root in the Likud.”

In Maariv, Ben Caspit writes, “The courageous act that Gideon Saar took will push off the next elections. The moment that Gideon Saar forms a new party, on the assumption that it successfully crosses the electoral threshold, Netanyahu’s chances of securing 61 MKs who are prepared to raise their hands to vote in favour of granting him either parliamentary immunity or an override clause to cancel his trial plummet precipitously. And the moment the chances of that [Netanyahu’s securing immunity from prosecution] plummet, the chances of holding early elections plummet in tandem.”

In Israel Hayom, Matti Tuchfeld writes, “If it becomes clear from upcoming polls that Saar is nipping at the Likud’s heels, it could cause Netanyahu to hit the brakes and to begin true negotiations with Benny Gantz to push off the elections. But it is not at all clear that it would take a significant number of votes away from Netanyahu. It would seem that the main people to be hurt by Saar’s move are primarily the other people who have declared their candidacy for the role of prime ministers: Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett. Both already have more than a little support from the ‘just not Bibi’ camp; now another player has stepped on to that very territory. Under these conditions, elections would not hurt Netanyahu. To the contrary. Therefore, if another round of elections becomes a reality, we can expect to see significant deal-making and [independent political parties joining forces to run on one election slate] because if that doesn’t happen, we can already declare Netanyahu the next prime minister.”

Kan Radio News reports this morning that officials in the General Security Service (GSS) – also known as the Shin Bet – have threatened to resign if National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat were to be appointed the next head of the organisation. Nadav Argaman, the current GSS director, is scheduled to retire within six months. GSS officials said Ben-Shabbat is unqualified to head the organisation and said that his appointment would cause grave damage to the GSS. They that said they have no faith in Ben-Shabbat and that should Prime Minister Netanyahu appoint him to that position, it would be only out of personal and political considerations.

Haaretz reports on Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer openly expressing support for the UAE’s arms deal with the Trump administration during an interview earlier this week. The report says, “Dermer’s public endorsement of the F-35 deal, at a time when members of Congress are expressing scepticism about it, represents a new stage in the relationship. Israel is openly using its influence in Washington to help its friends in the Middle East overcome challenges in the US political arena.” The Jerusalem Post quotes UAE Ambassador to the US, Yousef al-Otaiba, who said in an interview with the Hudson Institute that the opposition to the arms deal is politically motivated. “The most potent argument against it is the political one, that there was a lot of opposition because Donald Trump is the one selling arms to us. And I think that’s really what it comes down to. It comes down to a political debate, not a substantial debate,” Al-Otaiba said.