(Israel Government Press Office)

Yisrael Hayom analyzes the incident and asserts: "Israel is not a top issue for the warring sides in Syria. The regime is so busy fighting for its survival it has no interest in becoming enmeshed in a head-on clash with Israel, which could lead to its collapse. Hezbollah also understands the dangers of being dragged into war with Israel, which would be liable to hurt not only its assets in Lebanon, but also its chances of winning – along with Bashar Assad – the battle in Syria. The rebels, for their part, are entirely caught up in the war with Assad." The author says, however, that "The problem is that the Syrian regime no longer controls the border area with Israel," and believes that incidents are unavoidable given the existing chaos on the other side of the line. The paper reminds its readers that "The Israeli-Syrian border is no longer Israel's quietest border as it has been over the previous 40 years."

The Jerusalem Post is not surprised by the roadside attack, and notes that “[Syria] has deteriorated into a free-for-all fire zone the likes of which even this erratic region has never known.” The editor asserts: “If Syria teaches us anything, it is that territory still counts and counts big, contrary to trendy wishful-thinking,” and adds: Defensible lines and protected sanctuaries have not been rendered redundant.” The editor believes it is imperative not to overlook the unresponsiveness of the family of nations to the Syrian crisis, and declares: “If that is how they sermonize ineffectually over the mass murder of Arabs with whom they sympathize, it is safe to assume that they would be far less moved about what befalls unpopular Jews.”

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Yediot Aharonot discusses the controversy over Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon's recent remarks regarding US foreign policy and Israel-US relations. The author says, "Only if the minister knows what apparently nobody else in the world knows, namely that Israel is the greatest major power in the world, that it does not need any other country either militarily or diplomatically, that contrary to what is commonly believed, it does not rest on the US's shoulders but the opposite, and that the real dependence is that of the American administration on the Israeli government – only thus can one explain the Defense Minister's irresponsible conduct." The author urges Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to call Defense Minister Yaalon to order and says: "Netanyahu needs to personally apologize to the Americans no less than he apologized this week to the Jordanians for the killing of the judge," and adds: "Our relations with Washington are no less important than our relations with Amman."

Haaretz agrees with the economic experts who warned that “[Finance Minister Yair] Lapid's housing plan is unfair and unsound,” and believes that “the finance minister’s proposal to reduce home prices could do more harm than good.” The editor notes that the fear is that the plan, “which hinges on exempting first-time home buyers from VAT on apartments priced up to 1.6 million shekels (about $461,000),” will jack up prices rather than lead to their reduction. The editor asserts that if Lapid’s plan indeed fails, the public will understand two things: “The first is that policymakers are unable or unwilling to launch a plan to increase the supply of apartments. The second is that elected officials are making promises they cannot keep.”