The Times, the Telegraph, the Guardian, BBC News Online and the Daily Mail report that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince sacked his most senior generals last night on the eve of a visit to Britain where his conduct of the war in Yemen is expected to attract fierce protests. A late-night decree said that the chief of staff, General Abdulrahman Al-Bunyan, was retiring along with the heads of the ground and air defence forces. No reason was given. The changes were announced as part of a wider shake-up in royal advisory positions and provincial governorships. The departures come as the war in Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition is fighting rebels, is nearing the end of its third year. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also the Defence Minister, is believed to be behind various recent shake-ups in the country.

City AM has published an article by Dr Erel Margalit, the founder of Jerusalem Venture Partners and chairman of Israel Initiative 2020, on how “Israel is building bridges on the foundations of its tech revolution”. He argues for a “game-changing approach” that no longer “describes Israel as a nation surrounded by hostile enemies”. He argues: “Only true and lasting partnerships across the Middle East will take back the narrative from ISIS and the aggressive Iranian regime, and transform the region as we know it.”

The Independent and the Times report on the ongoing tax dispute which has led to the temporary closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Yesterday, the Jordanian government and the Palestinian Authority (PA) have thrown their support behind Christians in the disagreement with the Israeli government which has led to the closure of the site. Jerusalem’s City Hall wants to impose a levy on business properties owned by churches. Legislation being discussed in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, would prevent real estate deals on residential properties belonging to churches. The heads of the churches in Jerusalem have described the move as a “systematic campaign against the churches and the Christian community in the Holy Land” and have accused the Israeli authorities of enacting a “discriminatory and racist” policy. Mohammad al-Momani, a spokesman for the Jordanian government, said that Amman was in “full solidarity” with the churches in Jerusalem. A representative from Jerusalem City Hall said that the policy was not targeted at the churches but at businesses such as restaurants and function halls in properties owned by the churches which do not fulfil any religious purpose. City officials claim that the same policy is carried out towards Jewish synagogues that operate businesses on properties they own. The protest led an Israeli cabinet committee to delay for a week its consideration of the bill.

The Daily Mail via AFP reports that Canada’s opposition Conservatives said on Monday they would follow the US lead and recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel if they beat Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals in the next election in 2019. According to reports, a Conservative government led by opposition leader Andrew Scheer “will recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital when we form a government in 2019”.

The Daily Mail via AFP reports that an Israeli court on Monday sentenced a Jewish convert to Islam to 38 months in prison for seeking to join the Islamic State in Syria. Valentin Mazlevski, a Belorussian immigrant who moved to Israel in 1996, was the first Jewish-born Israeli to be charged for having IS ties, according to the Shin Bet. He was arrested in February 2017, a few weeks after a failed attempt to fly from Israel to Turkey, from where he allegedly planned to cross into Syria to join IS forces.

The Daily Mail via AP reports that an Israeli court on Monday released four of seven suspects held in a high-profile corruption case involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s inner circle. Israeli media reported late on Sunday that Tel Aviv Magistrate Court Judge Ronit Poznanski-Katz and securities investigator Eran Shaham-Shavit exchanged text messages discussing extending the detention of several suspects in the investigation involving Israel’s telecom giant Bezeq and the close confidants of Netanyahu. Poznanski-Katz was removed from the case after critics decried the exchange as an obstruction of justice, and Netanyahu backers pounced on it as part of their claim that the authorities were out to get him.

The Daily Mail via AP reports that relatives of Ahed Tamimi, the Palestinian teen who was arrested for slapping an Israel Defence Force (IDF) soldier, say troops arrested ten people from her West Bank village on Monday, including a 15-year-old cousin with a serious head injury. The teen, Mohammed Tamimi, had part of his skull removed by surgeons after being shot at close range by Israeli troops on 15 December. That incident reportedly set off Ahed Tamimi when she slapped and kicked two soldiers later that day. Mohammed Tamimi said he was taken from his home at 3am on Monday, despite pleas from his father that detention and exposure to cold could endanger his health.

The Daily Mail via AFP reports that public sector employees in the Gaza Strip went on strike Monday over unpaid salaries, amid a dispute between the two major Palestinian factions. All government institutions closed their doors in the morning as the union of public employees called for a strike; the second in a month. The union said the strike is necessary as staff have only received 40 per cent of their salaries for five months.

The Daily Mail via AP reports that European Union and Arab League countries insist that Jerusalem must be the joint capital of Israel and a future Palestinian state, as the US prepares to move its embassy there in a step angering the Arab world. Speaking after talks Monday between EU and Arab League foreign ministers, EU High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini said that the “special status and character of the city must be preserved”.

The Israeli media continues to be dominated by reports of the text messages sent between judge Ronit Poznanski-Katz and investigator Eran Shaham-Shavit regarding suspects in Case 4000. Haaretz reports that the full correspondence between the judge and investigator sheds new light on coordination with Maariv, arguing that “the full correspondence between the Israel Securities Authority investigator Eran Shaham-Shavit and Judge Ronit Poznanski-Katz, which was revealed yesterday, somewhat dispelled the suspicions that the two had made an illegal deal”.

Yediot Ahronot reports that Justice system officials have said that they expect the judge to resign while Maariv reports that close associates of the judge have said that she won’t resign. Times of Israel reports that “refusing to go quietly, judge and prosecutor in texting scandal deny wrongdoing” and Israel Hayom headline comments by Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and Supreme Court Justice Esther Hayut that the judge should either resign or be dismissed.

Ha’aretz reports from the State Attorney’s Office that Elovitch is suspected of giving bribes and receiving benefits worth 1bn Shekels.

Yedioth Ahronot reports that the new judge appointed to discuss the extensions of remand, Ala Masarwa, decided to extend the remand of Shaul Elovitch, the controlling shareholder of Bezeq, and Nir Hefetz, the former media adviser of the Netanyahu family.  Masarwa said: “The suspects are at the heart of the affair. At present they cannot be released.” Kan Radio News reports that this morning the Tel Aviv District Court will hear the appeal of Elovitch and Hefetz against the decision to extend their remand by a week.

The Jerusalem Post reports that European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has warned the US against putting forward its peace plan at this time, saying in Brussels that “given the region, any false step can be very dangerous”. Speaking to reporters after a meeting in Brussels between the 28 EU foreign ministers and a delegation of Arab foreign ministers, Mogherini said both the EU and Arab League ministers “have dealt with the conflict long enough around our common table to know what can fly and what cannot fly, and we believe it is wise to consider what can fly and cannot fly in terms of peace plans before putting any plans on the table and avoiding any false steps”.

Haaretz features an opinion piece by Amos Harel, which says that the dispute between Israel and Lebanon over the route of the northern border centres around Lebanese claims regarding 13 border points that the United Nations decided on 17 years ago.

Yediot Ahronot reports that Tamar Fogel, the surviving family member of the Fogel family – five of whose members were murdered in March 2011 by two Palestinians – is suing the Palestinian Authority (PA) for 400m Shekels. The family said: “Even to this day, the terrorists are receiving inflated salaries from the Palestinian Authority, which is contrary to all logic and justice. In filing this suit, we seek to send a message in the name of anyone with a human heart”.

Maariv reports on an upcoming crisis in the Knesset, with ultra-Orthodox members demanding that a draft bill be passed tomorrow about service in the army.