The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports that a judge linked Karin Grech’s murder to the doctors’ strike. It also reports that a transexual has won the right to marry.
The Malta Independent says that arms trafficking, nuclear power, human rights, refugees and Iran feature in Wikileaks cables about Malta.
MaltaToday says Malta jumped the gun when it announced that the EU had closed procedures against Malta on the power station extension contract. The decision still has to be taken by the College of Commissioners.
In-Nazzjon features a picture of the Prime Minister with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. It also says that Israeli company Bateman made strong pressure on the Maltese government to win the power station extension contract.
l-orizzont says Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt attacked the auditor yesterday. It also reports that fuel and gas prices have risen.
The overseas press
EU Observer reports the eurozone's unemployment rate hit 10.1 per cent last month as jobless rates rose in Italy, inched down in France and Germany, and remained stable in Spain. Eurostat said the number of people without a job in the 16-nation eurozone rose by 80,000 in October to 15.95 million people. Unemployment in the 27-state European Union rose by 84,000 people to 23.15 million. Separate figures showed that inflation in the eurozone remained unchanged at 1.9 per cent in November.
Börzen Zeitung says the cost of borrowing for Spain, Italy and Belgium increased as worries over the eurozone debt crisis intensified. The news came after Portugal's central bank warned of the risks facing its banks if the government failed to consolidate public finances.
France's Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said her country and Germany would stand by Portugal and Spain if they needed financial help. In an interview with the BBC's Hardtalk programme, she declined to speculate on the likelihood that Portugal and Spain would need a bail-out. Meanwhile the euro continued its decline against the dollar to touch an 11-week low.
Le Monde says Interpol has issued a wanted notice for 39-year old Julian Assange, the Australian-born founder of WikiLeaks, over an alleged sex offence. Assange, whose whereabouts are unknown, has denied the allegations, which stem from his encounters with two women during a visit to Sweden last August. He said the charges were the result of a mud-slinging campaign by the US against WikiLeaks.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Time magazine, Assange has said that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should resign if it was shown US diplomats were ordered to engage in espionage. The interview was conducted from an undisclosed location over the Skype internet phone service.
The Guardian says that in the latest batch of documents released by WikiLeaks, the US, Britain and Russia have all expressed deep concern about the safety and security of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons and that Islamist militants could steal enough nuclear material to build a crude nuclear device.
The Washington Times reports the US Defence Department says the ban on openly homosexual people serving in the American armed forces could be lifted without harming military readiness. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said the majority of soldiers supported this view although he acknowledged that some all-male units, such as the Marine Corps, were still uneasy about it.
There have been further student protests within Britain and Italy against the proposed rises in tuition fees and education budget cuts. In Italy, Ansa says hundreds of thousands tried to block roads and railway lines as the Lower House approved the reforms House by 307 votes for, 252 against and seven abstentions. The action went beyond Italy's borders too, with Italian Erasmus students in Paris hanging a banner against the reform bill from the city's Arc de Triomphe. In London, Sky News reports the police arrested over 150 demonstrators who refused to leave Trafalgar Square.
According to The Egyptian Gazette, first official results from Sunday’s general elections in Egypt have confirmed that the main Islamist opposition group, the Muslin Brotherhood, have failed to win a single seat. The opposition has expressed outrage at the result.
L’Equipe says Fifa Vice-President Issa Hayatou has denied bribery claims carried by the BBC TV programme Panorama and has threatened legal action. The revelations come only days before the four 2018 candidates and five 2022 World Cup hopefuls were expected to make their final 30-minute presentations at Fifa headquarters in Zurich later today.
France Football reports Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has been fined and banned for two Champions League matches by EUFA for improper conduct. During a Champions League last month, he appeared to instruct two of his players – Xabi Alonso and Sergio Ramos – to get themselves deliberately sent off for time-wasting, meaning they would be banned from Real's next match against Auxerre but then be free to start the Champions League last 16 knockout round without suspension.