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

The Sunday Times leads with the plight of the only Maltese who suffers ‘Locked-in syndrome’. It also reports that questions have been raised over a 2011 migrant’s death inquiry.

The Malta Independent says Franco Debono has stood by his threat to publish government’s ‘offer’ document made before he voted against the government. It also reports that Maltese literacy levels are ‘of particular concern’ according to an EU report.

MaltaToday says Malta is opposing an EU law to put more women on top. It also says that Labour still has to decide its position on the IVF Bill.

Il-Mument reports that the World Economic Forum has praised Malta’s education sector. It also says that experts are optimistic for the Maltese economy.

It-Torca says Mepa issued a permit for a car wash instead of a sports complex.  It also says Malta has the third highest illiteracy rate in the EU.

Illum says a woman suffering a tumour died after being kept waiting 18 months for treatment.   

The overseas press

Irish President Michael D Higgins has said he regarded unemployment as the biggest single problem facing Europe. The Irish Independent says that speaking in Dublin at the launch of the first in a series of nationwide “Being Young and Irish” workshops, President Higgins addressed up to 100 young people aged between 17 and 26, and spoke on how they could "take charge of change". He called on young people to submit ideas on the kind of society they wanted to live in, grow old in, and in the future hand on to future generations.

al bawaba reports that some  three million people living in several neighbourhoods in the Syrian city of Aleppo were without drinking water after a main pipeline was damaged in fighting. Government forces were reported to have regained control of a barracks in Aleppo after a lengthy battle with rebels.

The incident comes as the European Union agreed to sharpen sanctions against Syria, while increasing their humanitarian aid to refugees. Cyprus Observer reports Catherine Ashton urged Syrian opposition groups to form a united front against the Assad regime in order to make all Syrians feel secure about their future. She was speaking after an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers, who also discussed Iran and the ECB's bond-buying scheme.

US polls show President Barack Obama has received a modest boost after this week's Democratic National Convention. CBC News says the latest Gallup poll showed Obama pulling ahead of his Republican rival Mitt Romney by four percentage points. Nielsen also reported 35.7 million people watched the final night of the Democratic convention, when Obama delivered his nomination acceptance speech. Last week, Mitt Romney had 30.3 million viewers for his speech at the Republican convention.

Xinhua reports Chinese President Hu Jintao has announced his country plans to boost its infrastructure, spending more than $150 billion on roads, railroads, and energy projects. Speaking at the meeting in Vladivostok of 21 leaders representing 21 Asia-Pacific economies, he said enhancing his country's transport networks would enable China to import an extra $10 trillion worth of foreign goods in the next three years. The meeting is discussing how to enhance global growth by tearing down barriers to trade. The APEC forum accounts for 40 percent of the world's population, 54 percent of economic output and 44 percent of trade. Meanwhile, ABC says Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard left the summit early after learning her father had died.

Ansa announces that South Korea's "Pietà" has won Venice's Golden Lion for best film. Top director went to Paul Thomas Anderson for "The Master," and the film's stars, Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman, shared the best actor award. Israel's Hadas Yaron won best actress. Director Kim Ki-duk's "Pietà" tells the story of a loan shark who maims debtors for insurance money.

Al Ahram says Egypt's military has been coordinating its offensive against Islamist militants in the Sinai Peninsula with Israel. Cairo said it has killed 32 militants and arrested 38 people since "Operation Sinai" began in August.

Sueddeutsche Zeitung reveals that the wife of the former German President, Bettina Wulff, has filed a law suit against Google for rumours of an alleged past as an escort. The 38-year-old former German First Lady presented her complaint to the Hamburg court against both Google and ARD television presenter Guenther Jauch. Rumours of the alleged "red-light" past first started in 2006 to damage her husband’s reputation who was governor of Lower Saxony.

CNN says a rare tornado has struck New York City, b ringing heavy rains and high winds which blew out the windows of at least one building, while a separate twister has hit the Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC. The tornadoes struck as a line of fierce thunderstorms swept through the region, knocking out power to thousands of homes. There were no immediate reports of heavy damage or injuries.

An investigation is under way into claims a two-year-old girl was abandoned near a busy road in Portugal as her British parents were drunk in a nearby café. Expresso says the police were called to reports the child was alone in her buggy in the village of Carcavelos near the capital Lisbon at about 8pm on Tuesday. Her parents, said to be English teachers living in Portugal, were later found in a café 100 metres away in an advanced state of intoxication. The girl was fed soup and water at the café before she was taken to a police station where she was given a meal of fish and vegetables.

Opponents of Argentina’s president are pouncing on a warning she gave to her government appointees, saying it had no place in a democracy. Clarin reports President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said anyone engaged in corruption or doing things badly or behind her back should “fear God and have a little fear of me as well”. Her supporters laughed and applauded the line, but opponents said that invoking fear this way brought back memories of the 1976-1983 dictatorship. Congressman Ricardo Alfonsin, who came in third against Kirchner in the last election, said all Argentinians should reject such comments.

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