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

The Times says further reductions in medicine prices are expected to be announced this week. It also says that a battered woman’s husband was too drunk to recall anything. The woman was grievously injured on New Year’s Eve in Gozo.

The Malta Independent says that a woman has drowned in Australia’s ‘biblical’ flood.

l-orizzont leads with the increase in fuel prices. It also says that a 90-year-old man who lives in Bahrija has been able to turn on the lights for the first time. His house does not have an electricity supply, but photovoltaic panels have now been installed.

In-Nazzjon says boilers at St Luke’s Hospital have been decomissioned. It also says tht almost 600 cars have been scrapped under the scrappage scheme announced in the Budget.

The overseas press

The Egyptian Gazette reports that angry Christians have again clashed with Egyptian riot police – a day after 21 people were killed in a bomb attack on a church in Alexandria. Hundreds of protesters in Cairo and Alexandria demanded that the Egyptian authorities do more to protect their community. In Cairo, demonstrators heckled government ministers who went to St Mark's Cathedral, the seat of Orthodox Pope Shenouda, to offer condolences. The car of one minister was pelted with stones. In Alexandria, protesters were dispersed by police firing tear gas.

Die Welt says 13 leading European companies have appealed to Brussels for help in doing away with Hungarian laws that impose special levies on large foreign companies conducting business there. In a five-page letter sent to EC President Jose Manuel Barroso, they urged the EU to impose sanctions on Hungary for what they call anti-competitive measures. German Economics Minister Rainer Bruederle told Sueddeutsche Zeitung it was "fundamentally problematic" for an EU member state to tax foreign companies exclusively. Hungary has just began its six-month term as EU president.

As floodwaters continue to rise in many parts of Queensland, The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the Australian authorities have warned that the crisis could last as long as a month. Military aircraft are flying supplies to the city of Rockhamption which has been cut off by surging river levels. Earlier, a woman swept from the road in her car became the first victim of the widespread flooding. At least two others are reported missing.

Moscow Times says one of Russia’s most prominent opposition politicians, the former deputy prime minister Boris Nemtzov, has been sentenced to 15 days in jail after being arrested at a demonstration in Moscow. He was convicted of disobeying police orders at the rally

According to The Washington Times, President Obama has signed into law a Bill to compensate survivors of the September 11 attacks and rescue teams who suffered health problems after working in the ruins of the World Trade Centre. More than $4 billion (€3 billion) are expected to be paid out.

Islamabad’s Daily Universal reports Pakistan’s coalition government has lost its parliamentary majority, raising fears about its survival. Leaders of one of the main parties, the Karachi-based MQM, said they had resigned in protest against the government’s poor performance, especially on corruption and the economy.

Arkansas Post says wildlife officials in the US are trying to determine what caused more than a 100 blackbirds to fall dead from the sky over a small town in the state. Officials said some showed signs of trauma, suggesting they may have been hit by lightning or high-altitude hail. City authorities have hired a specialist waste-disposal firm to collect the dead birds from gardens and rooftops, and dispose of them.

Abrar quotes Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning for adultery, telling a news conference that she was "disgraced" by two German journalists who had interviewed her son. She said many people had exploited her case and denied she had been tortured. The two German journalists – a reporter and a photographer from the mass-circulation Bild am Sonntag – interviewed Ashtiani's son last October 10. They were then arrested for not obtaining the proper press credentials after entering Iran on tourist visas. Yesterday, Bild am Sonntag again urged Iran to release the journalists.

Il Tempo reports that a Ferrari driver has been arrested after he attacked the owner of a Fiat 600 which had not given way to him as he tried to overtake it on an Italian motorway. The 32-year-old driver of the €195,000 Ferrari 485m with a top speed of 320kphm repeatedly rammed the small car when his attempts to pass it were frustrated. The man eventually forced the Fiat 600, worth €9,000 and with a top speed of 150kph, on to the hard shoulder, and then he smashed a window and set about beating up the 32-year-old inside. Police officers eventually managed to arrest the Ferrari driver and his passenger, who had joined in the attack, and were locked up in Rome's Regina Coeli prison for assault, criminal damage and resisting arrest.

Goal.com reveals FIFA President Sepp Blater wants to set up an anti-corruption committee as part of new regulations introduced to 'strengthen the credibility' of the organisation. Blatter has said he would not be on the committee himself, but it would contain nine members from the world of sport and other occupations. The news comes as FIFA aim to recover from allegations of corruption over World Cup hosting votes where committee members Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii were banned by FIFA from taking part in any kind of football activity.




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