Press digest

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

The Times reports comments by Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea that 10% of Maltese people are on anti-depressants. It also quotes former judge Philip Sciberras saying that the claim by a senior Church official that those who cooperated for the introduction of divorce committed a sin was, ‘a medieval imposition'.

The Malta Independent says a Maltese registered chemical tanker was towed to France after a collision yesterday. There was no spillage.

In-Nazzjon also gives prominence to the tanker story, saying the crew were rescued.

l-orizzont says that Vassallo Builders and Polidano Brothers are vying to build the breakwater bridge.

The overseas press

Al Jazeera reports that the Arab League has backed the Palestinian decision to suspend peace talks with Israel until it resumed the freeze on constructing news settlements on occupied territories. However, a foreign ministers' meeting in the Libyan city of Sirte gave Washington a month to try to rescue Middle East peace talks and a halt to settlement building. A formal resolution would be adopted later today.

As the peace talks looked set to collapse, The Jerusalem Post says fresh violence erupted in the occupied West Bank when Israeli forces killed two Hamas militants said to be behind an August attack that killed four settlers, one of them pregnant. And in east Jerusalem, two stone-throwing Palestinian boys were run over and injured by a car driven by a hardline Jewish settler leader.

The Washington Times reports President Obama has called on China to release Liu Xiaobo, a jailed 54-year-old political who has just been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Liu - who was previously jailed for his involvement in the 1989 Tiananmen pro-democracy protests - was arrested in late 2008 after co-writing Charter 08, a bold manifesto calling for political reform in China.

Asia Observer says the Chinese government has responded angrily to the award, describing Liu as a criminal. The Foreign Ministry summoned the Norwegian ambassador in Beijing to protest. It later said in a statement the decision would hurt relations with Norway, stressing that the award should have gone to promoting international friendship and disarmament.

Magyar Hirpal announces that the death toll following Monday's toxic spill in Hungary has risen to seven after a body was found in a sludge-covered area, while another man died in hospital of injuries sustained in the spill. Meanwhile, dead fish turned up in the Danube river, sparking fears the waterway had become contaminated with dangerous chemicals.

Rescuers hope to reach the 33 miners trapped underground in Chile within 24 hours. El Mercurio quotes Mining Minister Laurence Golborne saying drilling equipment was being changed in preparation for the final push, but he made it clear it would be three to eight days before the rescue mission would begin. Engineers said the shaft was now just 34m from the chamber.

Le Figaro says the France's senate has approved raising the retirement age from 60 to 62 even as unions promised new protests. The senate adopted the contested article on the basic retirement age in a vote of 186 to 153. The article is part of a sweeping pension reform. The senate is expected to vote on the full reform next week.

A top North Korean official has confirmed that Kim Jong Il's youngest son would succeed him as the next leader. In the first public confirmation of the succession plan, Yang Hyong Sop, referred to Kim Jong Un as "the young general" during an exclusive interview with the Associated Press. Yang said the nation's people were honoured to serve him as their leader.

The Times reports Alan Johnson has been awarded the position of shadow chancellor by the new Labour leader Ed Miliband. Mr Johnson, who held cabinet posts under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, will be joined in the shadow cabinet by a number of defeated leadership hopefuls. In total 19 members were voted into Mr Miliband's shadow cabinet, with new shadow foreign secretary Yvette Cooper topping the poll. Ms Cooper's husband Ed Balls was named as the shadow home secretary

Mobile phone firms have been accused of concealing warnings about the health risks of using their handsets. The Daily Mail says warnings that Apple's iPhone and BlackBerry should be kept away from the body are buried deep inside the manual. All other manufacturers, including Nokia and HTC, carry similar small-print warnings despite insisting that holding mobiles against the ear and head is harmless. The newspaper reports health campaigners and politicians on both sides of the Atlantic have called for clear warnings to be put on handset boxes as well as a public education campaign, starting in schools, to advise on the safe use of the devices.

Aviation Today reports that the American Fedeal Aviation Administration has issued a warning to airlines abour the danger of carrying lithium batteries.used in mobile phones and manyother electronic devices, in cafrgo compartments. The FAA says the batteries are sensitive to heat and can burst into flames, risking a "catastrophic event".

Variety announces the 3D version of the next Harry Potter film has been ditched so as not to delay its release in standard 2D. It quotes Warner Bros Studios saying it could not complete the 3D conversion of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" in time for its 19 November UK and US release date and did not want to keep fans waiting for the film. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" would still be released in both 2D and 3D on 15 July 2011.