Weekly News highlights

A 24-year-old Nigerian was remanded in custody after being charged with knowingly infecting two former girlfriends with HIV. The man was also charged with defiling a minor.

PS's car in serious accident

A man was in danger of dying last Sunday following a collision between his car and the official car of Parliamentary Secretary Edwin Vassallo.

Mr Vassallo was only slightly injured in the accident, which occurred in Triq il-Bajja tas-Salini at around 1.45 p.m. The injured man, who is Irish, resides in Birzebbuga and was on his way from Naxxar to Bugibba when the collision caused his Kia Shuma to flip over.

Student assaults headmaster

A headmaster needed medical attention on Thursday after he was viciously attacked by a 13-year-old student who refused to remove a cap - which was not part of the school uniform.

The attack took place before the morning assembly, when the Paola Secondary School head ordered the student to remove the cap.

The schoolmaster, who was first insulted and then assaulted, was taken to hospital and tests were carried out to establish whether he had incurred fractures.

Garnishee order against former MLP president

The court has issued a garnishee order against former Labour Party president Emmanuel Cuschieri, after he failed to pay Lm1,500 libel damages to Ernest Tonna over comments passed during a Super 1 radio programme four years ago. Mr Cuschieri had been ordered to pay the damages last July.

Charged with stabbing wife

Joseph grech, 56, of St Paul's Bay, who was charged with stabbing his wife Rose in the face, seriously injuring her, was granted bail on Wednesday on condition he does not leave his Birkirkara home without court permission. Grech was charged with assaulting his wife with a knife in St Paul's Bay on Tuesday.

Magistrate Joseph Apap Bologna also bound Grech by a Lm300 deposit and a personal guarantee of Lm1,000.

Man cleared of involvement in heroin importation

One of four men charged in connection with the importation of seven kilos of heroin in summer, on Wednesday was cleared of his involvement, after a magistrate ruled there were no sufficient reasons for his indictment.

Magistrate Anthony Vella cleared Joseph Lebrun on grounds that the prosecution had failed to prove his involvement to the level required by law.

Over 4,000 traffic accidents in three months

There were 4,166 traffic accidents in the third quarter of this year - an increase of 18 over the same quarter of last year. Five persons were fatally injured, and 76 were seriously injured in the period under review.

One dead, one critical after road accident

A 25-year-old Jordanian, Faisal Al-Dbais, died on the spot and a 23-year-old Palestinian was in a critical condition after a traffic accident in Bahar ic-Caghaq early on Thursday morning. The police said the two men were in a Renault Laguna going towards St Andrews when the car overturned, after hitting a cable supporting a pole. It ended up in the driveway of a private residence.

GWU declares 'war'

The general workers Union on Tuesday will issue the first of a series of industrial action directives that will take effect on Thursday, general secretary Tony Zarb sad.

Addressing a national protest in Republic Street, Valletta, on Thursday - held purposely on the eve of the Commonwealth summit - Mr Zarb said the union would desist from issuing directives only if the government accepted to talk to them about mitigating the people's burdens.