Malta and international press digest

The following are the leading stories in the Maltese and overseas press today:

The Times leads with the arraignment of two persons in connection with last Tuesday’s murder in San Gwann. It carries a front page picture of Dr Gonzi visiting the Valletta primary school where interactive whiteboards have been installed.

In-Nazzjon says Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi declared yesterday that there would be no payment on health while he was prime minister. It also reports libel cases instituted by Dr Gonzi and the Cabinet against Dr Sant.

l-orizzont says PN strategists held a late meeting on Wednesday to discuss the implications of the health payment disclosures made by Dr Sant. It also says that the Education Minister is not being believed that Junior Lyceums will not be closed. It also reports that AD is calling for the withdrawal of a permit for a supermarket in Safi.

The Malta Independent quotes Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi saying “there will be no fees on medicines and healthcare as long as I have the job.

Malta Today leads with the libel cases instituted by Dr Gonzi against Dr Sant, saying there is now all out war.

One story dominates Friday's London papers - Prince Harry's 10-week war on the frontline in Afghanistan. The prince, who is third in line to the throne, has been in Afghanistan since December but his deployment was not reported due to an agreement between the Ministry of Defence and news organisations. However, that embargo was broken on Thursday after German, Australian and US websites reported that he was there. The British army is now reviewing Harry's status in Afghanistan.

The Daily Telegraph says the deployment was cloaked in secrecy to prevent details reaching the Taliban and endangering Harry and his comrades.

The Daily Express calls the prince "The Secret Hero", saying the 23-year-old Household Cavalry officer has been in action secretly in war-ravaged Helmand Province.

The Daily Mirror dedicates the whole front page to a picture of the prince in action under the title "My War: How I fought the Taliban in Afghanistan".

Under the tittle "One of Our Boys", The Sun reveals the front-line prince killed 30 Talibans.

"When Harry meta Tali" screams the Daily Star headline, and the paper gives us a smiling Prince firing a machine gun.

A quote from Harry gives The Times its lead headline: "This is about as normal as I'm ever going to get".

The Scotsman says Harry 'just wanted to do his bit'.

Alongside the story about Harry, The Guardian carries a warning from US intelligence officials that the West's war in Afghanistan is close to failing: following six years of military support and billions in aid, security in Afghanistan is deteriorating.

The Daily Mail also has a picture of the prince patroling the streets of Helmand Province but leads with its campaign against the use of plastic bags, quoting Prime Minister Gordon Brown saying the government was ready to force supermarkets to reduce the use of plastic bags if they do not take steps voluntarily.

The Financial Times quotes the results of a survey of finance professionals which show that London is losing its status as the world's leading financial centre and is being overtaken by New York.

The Record says a proud husband has described his wife as "the bravest woman in Scotland" after she saved his life by donating him half her liver.

And elsewhere...

As Israeli forces keep striking at targets in the Gaza, where they have killed at least 32 Palestinians militants and civilians since Wednesday, The Jerusalem Post quotes Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is in Tokyo, saying a major Israeli ground operation against militants in the area was not imminent. He said the air strikes were part of an ongoing battle against Hamas militants. The Israelis say their attacks are a response to over 100 rocket attacks Gaza-based militants have aimed at southern Israel over the same period.

The African Standard leads with the end of the two-month political crisis in Kenya after President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement. The two rivals signed the deal to create a coalition government that will comprise members from both the current ruling party and the opposition. More than 1,000 people were killed in ethnic and political violence after December elections that Odinga said were rigged.

Washington Post reports that President Bush has called on Turkey to end its offensive in northern Iraq "as quickly as possible". Speaking during a White House press conference, Bush did not demand a timeline for the country to withdraw its forces. Ankara claims that Kurdish PKK rebels have been using northern Iraq as a base for attacks on civilian and military targets inside Turkey.

Cyprus Mail quotes the new Cypriot president, Dimitris Christofias, saying his government's first priority is to negotiate a settlement to reunify the island. Christofias, who heads the Communist-rooted AKEL party, says fresh talks with the rival Turkish Cypriot community would be aimed at demilitarising the island. He was sworn in as president yesterday, after winning a runoff election in the Greek-Cypriot south of the divided island last Sunday.

Afghanistan Daily report the country's defence ministry has denied a top US intelligence official's claim that only 30% per cent of the country is under the control of President Karzai. US National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell told a senate committee in Washington "the Taliban has control of 10 per cent and local tribes have the rest". "

Variety reports the death of Mike Smith, of the 1960s pop group The Dave Clark Five. He died from pneumonia at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, aged 64. Smith, the band's lead singer and keyboardist, was admitted to the hospital's intensive care unit on Wednesday with a chest infection. He had been in hospital since September 2003 following a spinal cord injury that left him a tetraplegic.

Corriere della Sera reports that police in Italy have arrested eight people and confiscated 14 fake Ferrari Modena 360s - seven sold and seven under construction - in an operation reaching from Palermo to Milan. The gang of rogue mechanics, who made fake Ferraris out of other cars, knocked out the counterfeits based on Pontiacs, Mercedes and Toyotas at a bargain €19,700 each. The 360 Modena went out of production in 2004. The current second-hand price in Italy for one of the last is around €98,500.