Malta and international press digest

The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:

The Times leads with evidence heard in court in a case over alleged football corruption. It also says Malta has led in job-creation in the EU in the first quarter.

The Malta Independent highlights the yacht marinas privatization process, which starts today. It also reports agreement between the government and the MAM on the manning of health centres.

l-orizzont says the tuna fishing season is being extended until fishermen achieve their quota.

In-Nazzjon leads with the marinas privatization and the EU job-creation figures. It also reports that Parliament has approved the local councils reform bill on second reading.

The Press in Britain

The Independent has an aerial view of the one million protesters in Tehran - "who ignored threats, guns and bloodshed to demand freedom in Iran" - following the disputed general election outcome.

The Times reports that a paramilitary group opened fire at a rally of supporters of Iran's defeated opposition presidential candidate Mirhossein Mousavi.

The Guardian suggests that the unrest in Iran will not simply fade away.

A picture of Mirhossein Mousavi amid his supporters is prominent on The Daily Telegraph's front page, but the paper leads with news of a promising trial of a new arthritis drug.

The Daily Mail leads with a scathing look at the inquiry into the Iraq War saying "it will sit in secret, be unable to summon witnesses or apportion blame, be headed by a career civil servant and... won't report until after the election".

The Daily Mail leads with the story of an elderly Bolton couple, both keen gardeners, who won £25 million on the lottery.

An 'onion-growing grandad' is how The Sun describes new multi-millionaire Brian Caswell, who is Britain's third biggest lottery winner ever.

The Daily Express reports on ministers' concerns over the British asylum system, which has generated a backlog of 450,000 applicants.

The Daily Star reports Paul Gascoigne is facing demand for £100,000 cash from his ex-wife Sheryl because he missed a maintenance payment.

And elsewehere...

Börzen Zeitung says the global recession has claimed 1.22 million jobs across the 16-nation eurozone in the first quarter of 2009.

The worst of the recession is yet to come. The Scotsman quotes Erik Berglof, chief economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes saying that there still was "something rotten in the closet". Mr Berglof called for a US-style approach to publicise the bad debts in the system.

Iran's state television says the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ordered an investigation into claims of fraud in last week's presidential election.

The International Herald Tribune quotes Jonathan Faull, the European Commission's top justice and security official, hinting that Europe and America were forging an even closer relationship following the decision to close Guantanamo Bay.

Al Quds Al-Arabi reports International Middle East envoy Tony Blair has called for quick repairs to the Gaza infrastructure damaged in an Israeli offensive early this year.

Al Ayyam says a Palestinian military court has convicted a 22-year old woman of collaborating with Israel - the first time in years that a woman has been found guilty of such charges. She was sentenced her to life imprisonment with hard labour. The woman claimed she was forced into prostitution by her ex-husband, which made her an outcast.

Kathemeerini reports that firefighters have contained a blaze which threatened homes at two hillside suburbs of Athens and sent a thick cloud of smoke over parts of the capital. Authorities did not rule out arson.

USA Today says a 30-year-old American mother-of-four has been charged with child sex abuse in the state of Maine following a tip off from the British police. The woman apparently used a webcam to broadcast live images of child sex abuse on the internet. Her children - aged between 18 months and five years - have been taken into protective care.

EU Observer says Europe's governments have given the go-ahead for the first EU-wide safety standards for "childproof" locks on windows and balcony doors. They also backed moves to set new minimum requirements for the safety of baby bath time products, such as bath seats and other bathing aids for infants. EU Consumer Affairs Commissioner Meglena Kuneva insisted it was up to parents to judge the safety of their children, but said they needed to be sure that the products they used were safe.