The Times reports that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has launched an investigation into leading opposition figures who called for a boycott of the presidential elections, and accused them of attempting to “overthrow the regime”. The move came after complaints were filed against 13 individuals, many of whom urged citizens last month to shun the polls after seven presidential candidates withdrew their candidacy or were arrested.

The BBC News Online, the Independent, the Guardian, the Financial Times and the Telegraph all report on the recent strikes by the Bashar al-Assad regime in Eastern Ghouta, an enclave outside Damascus currently being held by Syrian rebels. At least 23 civilians are reported to have been killed and more than 130 people are now said to have died since the government intensified its bombardment on Monday. Rescuers and a monitoring group said warplanes bombed several towns in the Eastern Ghouta on Wednesday, causing buildings to collapse on residents.

The Times reports that Turkey and the Syrian regime are facing off in northwest Syria as fighting spreads and outside powers including Russia and Iran give up on attempts to implement a supposed nationwide ceasefire. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sent columns of troops and tanks into Idlib province and towns southwest of Aleppo in recent days; an incursion apparently unconnected to the attempt to crush the Kurdish YPG militia defending a pocket of territory around the city of Afrin, northern Syria.

BBC News Online reports that Israeli warplanes have fired missiles at a Syrian military position near the capital, Damascus according to Syrian media sources. A Syrian military statement said its air defence systems blocked most of the missiles, but gave no further details. Reports say ammunition depots in Jamraya were hit. It is the location of a scientific facility where the West suspects chemical weapons are produced. Israel, which has acknowledged carrying out at least 100 clandestine strikes in Syria since 2011, declined to comment.

The Independent has published a column by Umar Lateef Misgar in which he argues that “Palestinians shouldn’t embrace [Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi] during his visit to the West Bank this week. He cites Israel and India’s history of weapons trading and Modi’s domestic policies concerning Kashmir”.

BBC News Online reports that France has joined the US and Israel in criticising Poland’s new Holocaust law, describing the text as “ill-advised”. “You should not rewrite history, it’s never a very good idea,” Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said. Polish president Andrzej Duda signed the law on Tuesday. It outlaws accusations of Polish complicity in Nazi crimes committed under occupation.

All the Israeli media discuss Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s legal predicament.  Both Channel Two and Channel Ten announced last night that the police are expected to recommend that Netanyahu is charged with accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust in connection with Case 1,000. Regarding Case 2,000, the police are deliberating whether to include any recommendation to indict Netanyahu.

Also last night, Channel Two’s  Uvda programme included an interview with police commissioner Alsheich, who spoke at length about the police investigations into Netanyahu.  Alsheich supported the head of the Fraud squad Commander Roni Ritman, who has insinuated that he was set up with a sexual harassment suit because of “sensitive investigations” he is overseeing. Similarly, Alsheich said—without mentioning any names—that “very powerful forces” had sent private investigators to “sniff around” detectives involved in the Netanyahu investigations and to collect “information” about them.

This morning, Israel Radio picked up Netanyahu’s response on Facebook late last night and quotes the Prime Minister saying: “It is shocking to discover that the police commissioner has repeated the delusional and false insinuation as if Prime Minister Netanyahu sent private detectives against the police officers who are investigating him. It is shocking to discover that he also repeated the no less delusional and false insinuation by Ritman, as if the prime minister was involved in the complaint by the police officer against Ritman for sexual harassment.”

Yediot Ahronot includes commentary suggesting, “That’s it. The sand in the hourglass is running out. Even if it has taken time, the end is nigh. Next week it’s going to happen. And then we will at long last know whether there won’t be anything because there isn’t anything, or whether we have a prime minister whom the police recommends should be indicted for the most egregious crime a public servant can commit—accepting bribes.”

Haaretz leads with the crisis in Gaza and grave concern the health system is collapsing, with 40 per cent of medicines running out.  The paper quotes Dr Mahmoud Daher, head of the Gaza office for the World Health Organization, who said: “The shortage of medicines included in the basic basket is a phenomenon that has been going on for years in Gaza, but whereas in the past, 25 per cent of these items were missing, since early 2017 the proportion has been growing. We are already at 46 per cent.” The report also notes the Palestinian Authority is responsible for the purchase of medicine, but fails to send them regularly to Gaza.

Israel Hayom reports the IDF has reinforced its troops in the West Bank with three battalions due to concern of an outbreak of a new wave of terrorism and violence.  The decision to bring in reinforcements was made yesterday at a situation assessment meeting held by Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot who also visited to the Ariel intersection, where Itamar Ben-Gal was murdered on Monday. The IDF believes that the motivation exists to carry out attacks inspired by the murder in Ariel and the previous attack in which Rabbi Raziel Shevah was murdered last month.  The paper notes the increase in troops is based on experience that small squads that face trouble tend to use greater force, which leads to Palestinian casualties and that in turn ignites the situation.  On the other hand, a larger force feels less threatened and uses more discretion and less force, which evidently causes fewer casualties and reduces the chances of an escalation.

Yediot Ahronot covers comments by former Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, who spoke publicly for the first time since his release from prison, he commented on the allegations against Netanyahu. “I’m not known for my reticence, and I thought it would be apt and dignified to keep quiet and not to jump I haven’t been in touch with Netanyahu since 2009. From time to time I hear things from members of my family and so on. I wish for the Prime Minister that he end his term quickly and in a seemly manner.” He was speaking at Diaspora Museum in Tel Aviv in honour of the 70^th anniversary of the battle of Latrun.

All the papers report the resignation of Yaakov Peri, the Yesh Atid MK and former Shin Bet director who declared he intends to “take a time out from public activity”.  There have been reports he failed a polygraph test when questioned after allegedly leaking information to Aryeh Deri about an investigation against him in the 1990s.