Newspaper headlines: 'All-out war' fears and no 'glorifying terrorism'

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to members of the media on a runway before leaving Cairo, EgyptReuters

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been touring the Middle East as part of efforts to stop the crisis in Gaza escalating

By BBC News
Staff

The deteriorating situation in the Middle East continues to dominate the papers.

The Sun says "fury and fear" have filled Israel as the nation braces for all-out war. Tens of thousands of troops are awaiting the signal to attack the Gaza Strip, the paper says. "Middle East On The Brink" is the headline for the Mirror.

The Times reports that more than one million people have crowded onto the southern fringes of Gaza under the threat of a looming invasion. The Daily Telegraph leads on Israeli jets carrying out bombing raids on Lebanon and quotes a warning from the Israel Defence Forces that they would "destroy" the country if Hezbollah enters the conflict.

The Guardian leads on diplomatic efforts to stop the crisis escalating. It says US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will make a "last-ditch" attempt to deter an Israeli assault, or reduce its impact, when he visits Jerusalem on Monday, but adds that few diplomats expect Israel to abandon the incursion. The paper also uses an editorial to criticise Israel's approach, saying the current path is "a bloody road to nowhere" and that what the paper calls a "military overreaction" will only deepen the hatred between Israelis and Palestinians.

The Daily Mail and the Express lead on a pledge by Home Secretary Suella Braverman that anyone who mocks the murder of Jewish people will face police action. The Daily Mail says the warning follows a pro-Palestine march in central London on Saturday at which, among other incidents, two women were pictured with photos of paragliders taped to their jackets. Some of the militants who attacked the Supernova music festival in Israel, killing at least 260 people, entered the site using paragliders.

The Metro leads on a claim by Israel that it has killed a Hamas commander who "masterminded" the slaughter of hundreds of people during last weekend's raids. Israel says it's the third Hamas leader involved in the attack to have been killed over the past two days, the paper reports.

The Guardian says one of those taken hostage by Hamas is Oded Lifshitz, an 83-year-old journalist who the paper says worked for decades for the recognition of Palestinian rights. The paper says he was taken from his home in a kibbutz, along with his partner, who is 85.

Many of the papers report on government plans to tackle overcrowding in prisons in England and Wales, which will be set out by ministers later. The Daily Telegraph focuses on proposals to have some foreign criminals deported without facing prosecution. But the Times says that even under the emergency plans, there would still be a shortage of 2,000 places by 2025. The Sun says the increased use of community service punishments could help - but not, the paper says, if they're pointless walks in the park.