The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
The Times of Malta says the number of single parents on state hand-outs has doubled.
The Malta Independent discusses the appointment of the new President.
In-Nazzjon says part-time policemen have a contract which says they can serve as waiters.
l-orizzont asks if Sliema council acted illegally when it stopped cyclists from using the promenade.
The overseas press
A steam of bitterly cold Arctic air is sweeping down the United States’ mid-west where temperatures could fall to record lows in the next few days. Denver Post said the temperatures plummeted to minus 30 degrees Celsius in places with a potentially life-threatening wind chill making it feel even colder – as low as minus 50 degrees. In Canada, temperatures have dropped to minus 20 and 38 degrees in Toronto and Quebec respectively.
Meanwhile, The Sun says a man died after his mobility scooter fell into the River Thames on Sunday. More than 200 homes along the west coast of Britain have been flooded after heavy rains, strong winds and high tides hit the country over recent days. The Environment Agency has issued 96 flood warnings throughout England and Wales urging people to take immediate action, while a further 244 areas are on flood alert. It has urged residents in Oxfordshire and Dorset to prepare for more floods. Storms have caused flooding in Northern Ireland, while roads and trains have been affected in many parts of the UK.
Pope Francis has announced he would make his first trip to the Holy Land – visiting Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusalem – between May 24 and 26. Avvenire reports he told the crowd gathered in St Peter's Square for the traditional Angelus prayer that the date of the announcement, January 5, was significant because it commemorated “the historic meeting between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople”, 50 years ago.
Reuters reports the former leader of Italy's centre-left Pier Luigi Bersani underwent an operation to address a brain haemorrhage on Sunday, less than a year after he resigned as head of the Democratic Party following party upheaval and a disappointing election. He is reported t be ain a stable condition but6 hospital sources said the next 48-72 hours are crucial. His unexpected illness prompted an outpouring of sympathy and support from both supporters and former rivals.
Kyiv Post says thousands of people have gathered in the Ukrainian capital to protest against the president’s decision not to sign an agreement to increase ties with the EU. Opposition spokesman Vitali Klitschko renewed a call for the European Union to impose sanctions on Ukraine's leadership. He said a fresh wave of protests would begin after the Orthodox Christmas holidays on Monday and Tuesday and also announced plans for a general strike.
Syria's main opposition National Coalition has re-elected Ahmad Jarba as its leader during a general assembly meeting in Istanbul on Sunday. AFP quotes a coalition statement saying Jarba won 65 votes, beating his only rival Riad Hijab – the best-known defector from the regime of President Bashar al-Assad – by 13 votes. The Coalition is set to discuss on Monday whether to take part in the peace talks, though a key bloc, the Syrian National Council, has already announced it will boycott the so-called Geneva 2 process.
Police in Bangladesh fired at protesters and opposition activists torched more than 100 polling stations during a national election boycotted by the opposition and described as flawed by the international community. Dhakar News reports at least 18 people were killed in the election-related violence yesterday. Opposition activists have staged attacks, strikes and transportation blockades in unrest that has left at least 293 people dead since last year.
China has investigated almost 37,000 officials suspected of corruption in more than 27,000 cases between January and November last year. State news agency Xinhua says out of the 27,236 cases, 12,824 resulted in “losses for the people” involving a total of 5.51 billion yuan ($0.9 billion). Communist Party chief Xi Jinping has taken a hard line against graft since coming to power in 2012, warning that corruption could destroy the party.
Al Ayyam reports hundreds of people are fleeing the western Iraqi city of Fallujah to escape a heavy artillery bombardment and air strikes by the military. A new wave of bombings has caused carnage in Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, killing at least 20 people. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry has said the United States will support Iraq’s fight against al-Qaida-linked militants, but won’t send in American troops.
In South Sudan, as negotiations between the two sides made little progress, government forces are continuing to press towards the strategic city of Bor despite suffering a number of casualties. A BBC reporter travelling with the government army said a general was killed when rebels ambushed a convoy of reinforcements.
Al Ahram says an Egyptian court has given suspended one year jail terms to 12 political activists for attacking the campaign headquarters of a former presidential candidate in the 2012 election. The activists are leading figures in the secular movement that triggered the uprising against the former President Hosni Mubarak.