Both the Guardian and Financial Times report that there has been fierce opposition from a wide spectrum of Israeli leaders towards a recent letter of conscientious objection signed by 43 reservists from the elite 8200 intelligence unit. The signatories claimed that the intelligence activities of the unit are “deepening the military control of the Occupied Territories.” Both reports highlight that Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon threatened to treat the refuseniks as criminals. The Guardian notes sharp criticism of the letter from Israel’s Prime Minister, President and opposition leaders.

Meanwhile, the continuing international response to ISIS is widely covered. The Guardian, Telegraph, Financial Times and Independent all report that leaders from more than 30 countries met in Paris yesterday and pledged to use “whatever means necessary” to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The online editions of the Times and Independent both report that Iran claims it turned down a United States request to join the Paris parley, with Ayatollah Khamenei quoted saying that he refused to agree to Iran’s attendance as the US has “dirty hands.”

The online editions of the Times and Independent also report suggestions that Al-Qaeda leaders in Syria attempted to persuade ISIS to release British hostage Alan Henning, who remains in the hands of ISIS.

Elsewhere in the region, the Guardian online says that a prominent Egyptian activist and blogger has been granted bail over a retrial, having originally been handed a 15-year prison sentence for violating the country’s strict protest laws.

According to the Times online, a 25-year-old British woman, who also has Iranian citizenship, has apparently been accused by Iranian authorities of spying for British intelligence. The woman, who is a student at the School for Oriental and African Studies in London, was arrested three months ago when she attempted to enter a stadium to watch a men’s volleyball match as part of a protest against the country’s ban on women attending male sports events.

In the Israeli media, Yediot Ahronot leads with a warning by Israel’s Counter-Terrorism Bureau that Israeli tourists could be targets for ISIS and other Islamist extremists as they travel abroad during the upcoming holiday season. The bureau warned about the dangers of Islamists who have taken up arms in the Middle East and are returning to Europe, plus the increase in anti-Semitism in Europe. The story is also featured prominently in Maariv and Haaretz.

The ongoing budgetary dispute between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yair Lapid, which is causing serious coalition tension continues to make headlines. Yesterday, Netanyahu effectively froze Lapid’s flagship legislation, to exempt many first-time homebuyers from VAT. It is the lead item in Israel Hayom and Maariv while Yediot Ahronot’s headline says “the rift widens.” Israel Radio news quotes sources from Lapid’s Yesh Atid party saying that the issue could cause a significant coalition crisis.

Meanwhile, Israel Radio news reports that the Likud Central Committee, which is headed by prominent Netanyahu critic Danny Danon MK, met yesterday in Ashkelon with around 300 people in attendance. However, most Likud Ministers and MKs attended a Jewish New Year reception in Petach Tikvah, which was also attended by Netanyahu. Yediot Ahronot’s Akiva Novick comments that the Petach Tikvah event “felt like an election rally” and that those “who came to support him [Netanyahu] were united in a feeling of ‘us against them.’”