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Media Summary

Two local staff of British Consulate arrested for terror plot

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In the UK and international papers today, several papers note that Iran invited several nations including Russia, China and EU representatives to tour its nuclear sites. In other news, most papers report that Israel arrested two Palestinian employees of the UK consulate in Jerusalem who were charged with arms trafficking and planning a plot with Hamas members to fire a rocket into the main football stadium in Jerusalem.

Over the bank holiday weekend, the Sunday Independent and Sunday Telegraph noted that a Palestinian was killed at a West Bank checkpoint near the city of Nablus. The Independent on Saturday reported that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas backed the draft Palestinian UN resolution condemning Israeli West Bank settlements. In other news, the paper reported that a Palestinian woman died on Saturday from the effects of tear gas she inhaled while attending a protest against the security barrier in Bil’in on Friday.

In the Israeli press, all papers report that Iran has invited the EU, Russia and China to tour its nuclear sites. In addition, the papers note that the Shin Bet Security Service arrested two Palestinian employees of the UK consulate in Jerusalem for arms trafficking and aiding Hamas. All papers also report on a committee report that recommends increasing the government’s take from oil and gas revenues from the current one-third to 50-62%. Haaretz and the Jerusalem Post note that the IDF found inconsistencies in the medical report of the death of a Palestinian woman who inhaled tear gas during a protest on Friday in Bil’in. Both Papers also report that former Fatah security strongman Muhammad Dahlan denied accusations that he has been plotting a military coup to unseat Abbas. Haaretz reports that Israeli officials are denying reports that Jewish leader Malcolm Hoenlein met with Syrian President Bashar Assad last month and delivered a message on behalf of PM Netanyahu. The paper also notes that Netanyahu told a Knesset committee meeting yesterday that the Palestinians are to blame for the deadlock in the peace process and that Israel was willing to accept an additional three month settlement construction freeze but the US retracted the offer.