Press digest

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

The Times says the EU expects urgent drastic measures to make pensions affordable. It also says the police have seized driving licences after investigations in the Licensing Department of Transport Malta. Three employees were suspended some weeks ago.

The Malta Independent reports on the privatisation of the Manoel Island Yacht Yard.

In-Nazzjon says millions are to be invested in the Manoel Island Yacht Yard. It also says that prime ministers Berlusconi and Gonzi yesterday discussed the repatriation of migrants.

l-orizzont confirms that Geitu Mercieca, deputy general secretary of the GWU, is stepping down. It also says that the Consumers' Association says consumers did nto known when the announced price cuts in medicines would come into effect.

The overseas press

The New York Times quotes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying a peace agreement with the Palestinians was possible within a year if direct talks start. He told at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that it was time to stop putting conditions on direct talks and called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to sit down with him for talks. The Palestinians are demanding a halt to all Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank and east Jerusalem before direct talks begin.

The International Herald Tribune says the US has deported 10 people who spied for Moscow as part of a prisoner exchange with Russia. A judge in New York ordered the immediate expulsion of the 10 Russian agents after they pleaded guilty to spying for a foreign country.

And in Moscow, Pravda reports Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has pardoned four people convicted of espionage in Russia. It was still unclear where or when they will be freed. A presidential spokesma said all four had submitted a plea for pardon admitting their guilt.

Abrar says the Iranian authorities have announced that a 43-year-old woman convicted of adultery would not be stoned to death. Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, who has been in prison in Tabriz since 2006, had already been punished with flogging for an "illicit relationship" outside marriage when another court tried her for adultery. There has been an international campaign to prevent her being stoned.

Kathermerini reports that Greek lawmakers faced down a general strike and widespread protests Thursday to confirm approval of an unpopular reform which will raise the retirement age from 60 to 65 and cut pensions. Some 12,000 people had earlier marched through Athens in the sixth general strike since February, carrying banners attacking the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.

EU Observer quotes a reports which shows that Europe was consuming far more fish than its waters could now provide, leaving it reliant on fish caught elsewhere in the world. According to the study if the EU were only to consume fish from its own waters it would run out 189 days into the year. The report calls for a reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), which governs fishing in the EU, to make fish stocks in Europe's waters more sustainable.

Dutsche Welle reports three men were arrested in Germany and Norway who are thought to be linked with the terrorist organization al Qaeda. The detainees are reported to have been planning a bomb attack in Oslo.

Slovakia Globe says Slovakia's president has sworn in the country's first female prime minister, Iveta Radicova, two days after her party agreed to terms to form a four-party coalition. The 53-year-old is a member of the center-right Slovak Democratic and Christian Union party, which received the second-highest number of votes in parliamentary elections last month.

Aviation World reports that an experimental solar-powered plane landed safely in Switzerland after completing a record 26-hour long flight. Being able to fly at night is a key step for the "Solar Impulse" team towards flying around the globe using only solar energy.

Moscow Times says a woman from Georgia turned 130 yesterday, claiming to be the world's oldest person. Antisa Khvichava was born on July 8, 1880. She retired from her job as a tea and corn picker in 1965, when she was 85. The Gerontology Research Group said the oldest documented person is 114-year-old Eugenie Blanchard of Saint Barthelemy, France. It has yet to examine Mrs Khvichava's claim.

El Pais reports that the Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has said that state protection was needed for the oracle octopus that predicted Germany's exit from the World Cup as Germans demand a public roasting. And fans from Spain and the Netherlands would be anxiously watching today Paul's pick for the Spain-Netherlands final on Sunday, while Germans are hoping for a third place finish in Saturday's Germany-Uruguay match.