The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports that a man was convicted late yesterday of the murder of a young woman 12 years ago. It gives prominence, however, to new residence rights being given to immigrants who would have been granted protection for five years.
The Malta Independent leads with the fire which destroyed a detergents factory in Mriehel. It also reports how 116 migrants were rescued at sea while Italy refused to help.
MaltaToday quotes Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi having said in Lampedusa on Saturday that Malta was right to complain that Italy should have been intervened in rescuing migrants last Thursday.
In-Nazzjon reports on work being done on the new Oncology Centre. It also says that the government is investing €66m in the maritime sector.
l-orizzont leads with the huge fire at Drop Chemicals in Mriehel. It also says that according to the Central Bank, inflation is set to continue to rise this year.
The overseas press
Deutsche Welle reports EU foreign ministers have agreed to implement a de facto oil embargo against Muammar Gaddafi's embattled regime during a meeting in Luxembourg. The EU added energy firms accused of financing Gadhafi's regime to its list of sanctions. The 27-nation bloc had already imposed sanctions against Libya's primary oil group, NOC, as well as four of its subsidiaries. Meanwhile, the United Nations has declined an offer by the EU to organise a military mission aimed at easing humanitarian aid efforts in Libya. According to Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb, OCHA is philosophically opposed to military involvement in humanitarian missions.
Le Monde says the French and British governments have complained that fellow members of the Nato alliance were not doing enough to support military operations in Libya. French Defence Minister Gerard Longuet said France and Britain were bearing the bulk of the burden of enforcing the no-fly zone in Libyan air space. He said that without full American participation, the West probably would not be able to stop attacks by Gaddafi loyalists on besieged rebel cities.
But the Obama administration has insisted the US would stick to its plan to remain in the back seat of the Libya air campaign after three weeks of air missions that have failed to turn the tide against Muammar Gaddafi. The Associated Press quotes US officials saying they were comfortable with their role and had no plans to step up involvement. The Americans said Nato could carry out the operation without a resumption of last month’s heavy US efforts.
Meanwhile, Al Jazeera reports Gaddafi forces have fired rockets along the eastern front line and continued to shell the besieged city of Misrata. Several rockets also struck Ajdabiya, the main gateway town into the rebel-held east. Nato has said that its aircraft destroyed four tanks near Zintan, 120 kilometers southwest of the capital, Tripoli.
As hopes for a rebel military victory faded, diplomatic efforts to find a solution were picking up momentum. Al Arabiya says that diplomats will gather in Qatar later today for a meeting of the Libya contact group, which aims to coordinate an international response to the conflict. The British government has been criticized for allowing the former Libyan foreign minister Moussa Kousa, who fled to Britain last month, to attend the diplomatic talks in Doha. Families of those killed in the 1988 Lockerbie airliner bombing said Mr Kousa should have stayed to face trial for his alleged involvement.
Al Ahram reports former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was in hospital in Cairo after falling ill while being questioned over corruption allegations and the killings of protesters. There are conflicting reports over the condition of Mr Mubarak who is 82. State television said he suffered a heart attack.
Meanwhile, The Washington Times says the United States has criticised an Egyptian military court sentencing of a blogger to three years’ imprisonment for insulting the armed forces. A State Department spokesman said it was not the kind of progress expected in a post-Mubarak Egypt.
According to ABC News, on Amnesty International has called on Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara to put a stop to reprisal attacks by his supporters against followers of the former leader and bitter rival Laurent Gbagbo. It said that in Abidjan dozens of young Gbagbo supporters had gone into hiding. Meanwhile, French troops have discover several large arms caches they say would have been used by Gbagbo.
O Globo reports that days after gunmen shot dead 12 children in a school in Rio de Janiero, Brazilian lawmakers say they want a referendum on banning the sale of guns. The leader of the Senate said legislators would rush through a Bill to allow a referendum at the beginning of October.
The Japanese carmaker Toyota has announced it would stop production in five of its factories in Europe for several days in April and May. Japan Today says the stoppage is due to a shortage of supplies from Japan following the earthquake and the tsunami a month ago. Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has said food from the region near the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant is safe to eat despite radiation fears.