Press digest

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

The Times says Kappara residents have urged the the government to amend plans for a flyover at Kappara because of privacy issues.

The Malta Independent says no voting is to take place in Parliament while Opposition leader Joseph Muscat and his delegation are abroad. It also says that insurance issues may affect fireworks this year .

In-Nazzjon says that Censu Galea is to be appointed deputy speaker . It also reports on austerity measures in the UK to reduce the deficit.

l-orizzont says a BWSC sub-contractor has been accused of bribing the European Standards Authority. It also highlights Opposition leader Joseph Muscat's meeting with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd yesterday.

All the newspapers carry stories about Thea Garrett ahead of her participation in this evening's Eurovision Song Contest semi-final in Oslo.

The overseas press:

The Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has told France 24 the authority had ruled out the use of armed force against Israel if indirect talks with the Jewish state fail. He said they would have to turn to the UN Security Council for a resolution. Abbas suggested a two-state solution with an international military force ensuring security on both sides of the border. Abbaas also denied Israeli claims that his appeal to boycott products made in Israeli colonies was tantamount to inciting hatred against Israel.

The Washington Times reports Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri praised Obama for reviving indirect Israeli-Palestinian peace talks as the two leaders met in Washington. However, he warned the US President that Arab leaders were frustrated and sceptical of Washington's efforts.

Meanwhile, The Jerusalem Post says Isreal has warned that a flotilla of humanitarian aid ships sent from Ireland, Greece and Turkey to help people in Gaza would not be allowed in. The Israeli Navy has said it is preparing to divert the armada to the Israeli port of Ashdod.

The New York Times reports UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has voiced hope that prompt Security Council action would spur resumption of six-way talks on North Korea's nuclear programme. His comment came hours after South Korea slapped new sanctions on Pyongyang over the sinking of a warship in March. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has announced steps to halt trade with Pyongyang, vowing to punish those who carried out the attack.

The Washington Post says the United States has confirmed it will hold naval exercises with South Korea, saying the situation was "highly precarious". China, the North's only major ally, urged calm. Japan said it was contemplating its own sanctions on Pyongyang. Experts from the US, the UK, Australia and Sweden said in a report last week that a torpedo had hit the S.Korean vessel, the Cheonan.

Panapress reports a Mauritanian prosecutor has for the death sentence for three men standing trial over the murder of four French tourists in 2007. At the trial's opening the defendants claimed to be "soldiers of al Qaeda".

Irinn reports that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was interrupted by a small crowd shouting "unemployment, unemployment" during a speech on Monday. The rare display of dissent comes in the run-up to the anniversary of the contested presidential election on 12 June last year. According to official statistics, the unemployment rate is 11 per cent but observers said it was much higher.

Oil City Derrick says BP has admitted its failure to plug the gushing Gulf of Mexico oil well was frustrating and was preparing for its next major attempt on the leak. A month into a disaster that is spreading damage in Louisiana's wetlands, Doug Suttles, BP's chief operating officer went on all three US network morning talks shows saying it would be at least Wednesday before it tried using heavy mud and cement to plug the leak.

In the UK, the Queen is due to address Parliament and announce the laws that the coalition Government intends to introduce over the next 18 months. The Independent leads with the £6.2 billion spending cuts announced by the Chancellor and shows a graphic depicting Britain's mountain of debt - £893.4 billion. Metro claims graduates are facing the brunt of the Government's spending cuts as a freeze in civil service recruitment is announced.

The Irish Times quotes Justice Minister Dermot Ahern warning Facebook and Twitter users that they could be sued if what they post comments which were damaging or defamatory to other people. Speaking at the launch of the annual report of the Press Council, Mr Ahern said social media sites are not exempt from the State's defamation laws. The council received 351 complaints last year.

Several London newspapers focus on the story about two boys, aged 10 and 11, found guilty of trying to rape a girl of eight in west London. The Daily Telegraph says they had been branded criminals for "playing doctors and nurses" while it questions have been raised over whether juveniles should appear in a Crown Court. The judge said the system which put the three children through the adult court was "far from ideal".According to The Sun, the pair are Britain's youngest convicted sex offenders.

The New York Post reports a 63-year-old man has been charged with sexually abusing a sleeping woman on an overnight flight from Hong Kong to New York. He faces up to three years in prison if convicted on the charge. Prosecutors alleged that the man reached under the blanket of a woman sleeping next to him on the flight and sexually abused her. Passengers sitting behind the victim kicked her seat to alert her. When the victim awoke, she became aware of the abuse and informed the flight crew.