The BBC reports that a looted coin worth $1m has returned to Israel after years-long hunt. The coin is rich in symbolism, minted during a Jewish revolt nearly 2,000 years ago. Looted in Israel in 2002, it was eventually tracked down, seized and is being returned to where it came from.

Reuters reports that maritime border talks between Lebanon and Israel that could help allocate oil and gas resources are close to concluding after around two years of negotiations, a top Lebanese security official said on Tuesday.

The Guardian has reported that in December 2020, Donald Trump told friends he was afraid Iran would try to assassinate him in revenge for the death of Qassem Suleimani, an Iranian general killed in a drone strike nearly a year before.

Reuters has reported that western powers are lobbying other states on the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s board to jointly pressure Iran to give the agency the answers it has long sought on uranium traces found at three undeclared site.

All the Israeli media report this morning that an Israeli army officer was shot and killed earlier this morning during an exchange of gunfire, in which two Palestinian gunmen were also killed. Channel 12 News reports that according to the IDF, two suspects had been spotted near the separation fence, north of Jenin and that troops were then deployed and surrounded them. The troops followed the protocol for arresting a suspect, and the gunmen opened fire on the soldiers. Both armed men were neutralised by the troops. According to Palestinian media, one of the men killed in the exchanges of fire was a Palestinian Authority intelligence officer. The IDF Central Command is investigating the incident.

Maariv highlights the Israeli security services, on high alert ahead of the Jewish holidays that begin next week. The paper reveals that according to an intelligence assessment, there are more than 70 planned terror attacks, with the main target being Jerusalem. Security forces are preparing for increased tension around the Temple Mount. While the Police have significantly increased the number of motorcycle based rapid response officers. Last week two patrolmen in Tel Aviv prevented a large attack last week when they arrested a terrorist armed with a gun and explosive material in Jaffa. The paper also quotes IDF Intelligence Director Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva who spoke about recent developments in the territories at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) at Reichman University in Herzliya. Haliva said, “The holiday period is always a sensitive period, but I can anticipate that this year there is the potential for very significant events during the holidays. In the Palestinian arena we are looking to the longer-term future, to the day after Abu Mazen and at the battles to succeed him as a result of that. It is a Palestinian interest to reduce the level of terror on the ground and to stabilise the PA’s governance. Nor do I not want to arrest dozens of terror suspects every night and we must take the right actions to stabilise the PA. That is an Israeli security interest.” Kan Radio revealed that last week senior Israeli and Palestinian officials met secretly in an attempt to reach agreements that would allow for the restoration of Israel-Palestinian security cooperation in the northern West Bank. Two Israeli defence officials met last Thursday with PLO Secretary General Hussein al-Sheikh, who is responsible for security cooperation with Israel, and with Commander of the General Intelligence Service Maj. Gen. Majed Faraj. However, no significant progress was made.

Yediot Ahronot covers other aspects of Maj. Gen Haliva’s comments noting, “Haliva sat down for a conversation with Professor Boaz Ganor, the director of the ICT. Ganor coaxed several statements out of Haliva that he probably would not have made in a written speech” Regarding Gaza, Haliva said he continues to believe that Operation Guardian of the Walls will produce a five-year period of quiet, notwithstanding Operation Breaking Dawn earlier this year. “I still stand behind that statement,” he said. “In Gaza, alongside Hamas’s use of force, we are also seeing that the processes of economic stabilisation and the entry of labourers into Israel have produced the potential for quiet that will endure over the course of years. We aren’t in an isolated arena against Hamas; there are other actors facing us, such as Islamic Jihad, against which Hamas had to take meaningful action. If Hamas is the sovereign in Gaza, it should have prevented Islamic Jihad from its recent operations.” The paper also noted his comments towards Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who threatened to attack Israeli natural gas drilling platforms. “I hope for Nasrallah’s sake that he isn’t underestimating Israel’s reaction if he decides to escalate,” said Haliva. “I’ll remind you that we shot down the UAVs that Nasrallah dispatched towards the platform, and there wasn’t any Hezbollah retaliation for that. From our perspective, downing the UAVs was sufficient, and it wouldn’t have been right to retaliate for the very decision to dispatch them.”

Haaretz reports that Israel has asked Qatar to pressure Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas into ordering PA security forces to step up their activities against Palestinian militants in the West Bank, particularly in Jenin and Nablus, amid an increasing number of attacks and attempted attacks on Israelis. The paper notes, “The appeal to Qatar, which in recent years has endeavoured to position itself as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians, is among the measures Israel has taken to persuade Abbas to prevent further escalation in the territory. Israeli leaders also fear that Abbas’ scheduled speech to the United Nations General Assembly in two weeks will fan the flames in the West Bank instead of calming the situation.”

Maariv headlines Prime Minister Lapid announcing the Yesh Atid list to run in the election. The top ten comprises of current ministers and those in senior Knesset roles. Behind party leader Lapid, are ministers Orna Barbivai, Meir Cohen, Karin Elharrar, Meirav Cohen, Yoel Razvozov, and Elazar Stern. Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy is in the eighth, followed by Merav Ben Ari, who heads the Knesset’s Public Security Committee and in tenth slot head Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee chair Ram Ben Barak. This places four women in the top ten. The highest place newcomer to the party is Michal Shir, who formerly represented New Hope in the outgoing Knesset. The paper also notes that Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel announced yesterday that he would take a break from political life. Hendel, who co-founded the Zionist Spirit Party with Ayelet Shaked a month-and-half ago, which split up earlier this week. He will not run in the upcoming general election, but will remain in government for now and intends to step back from politics as soon as a new government is formed.