The following are the top stories in the national and international news today.
Times of Malta interviews Beppe Fenech Adami who says he is mentally prepared to “bite the bullet” and have an operation to remove a 15cm
malignant tumour from his back. It also continues to follow the story of Martin Galea, who was abducted in Libya last week, saying that although he is no closer to being released, but the government said it appeared he is still alive.
Maltatoday says a police investigation requested by the government in suggestions of whether commissions were paid to pay the owners of Cafe Premier €4.2 million to vacate the premises has been concluded.
The Malta Independent on Sunday says China could drill for Maltese oil through a new ‘neighbour state’ clause.
Illum says that the mystery of the six-year-old girl who disappeared from Gozo a century ago is still being researched by a university lecturer.
It-Torca says the General Workers Union is in continuous negotiations with the government to guarantee Enemalta workers their job and conditions of work as the corporation is on its way to become a plc.
Kullhadd says the number of people registering for employment dropped by 1,038 in the first six months of this year.
Il-Mument also interviews Dr Fenech Adami. In another story it criticises the government for the way it is dealing with the Libya situation.
International news
VOA News reports the United States has temporarily closed its embassy in Libya and evacuated the staff to neighbouring Tunisia because of heavy fighting in Tripoli. US citizens in Libya have been asked to depart immediately. Nearly 50 people were killed during clashes between Islamist-led fighters from Misrata and Zintan militias earlier this month as the groups fought for control of the airport.
Haaretz says Israel has extended a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip for another 24 hours, but Hamas said it would only accept the truce if Israeli troops left the territory. The 20-day conflict has killed at least 1,050 Gazans – mostly civilians – and 42 soldiers and three civilians in Israel. Yesterday, Gazans took advantage of the lull in fighting to recover more than 100 bodies from the rubble and stock up on food supplies.
RIA Novosty says Russia has reacted angrily to additional sanctions imposed by the European Union over Moscow’s role in the Ukraine crisis, saying they would hamper cooperation on security issues and undermine the fight against terrorism and organised crime. Russia’s Foreign Ministry also accused the United States, which has already imposed its own sanctions against Moscow, of contributing to the conflict in Ukraine through its support for the pro-Western government in Kiev.
Kyiv Post quotes Ukrainian officials saying their forces advanced to the outskirts of a key town north of Donetsk as they tried to retake the stronghold held for months by pro-Russia rebels. The move comes as Ukrainian forces appear to have gained some momentum recently by retaking control of territory from the rebels. But Russia also appears to becoming more involved in the fighting, with the US and Ukraine accusing Moscow of moving heavily artillery across the border to the rebels.
Le Journal du Dimanche reports President Hollande of France has promised that the bodies of 118 people who died when an Air Algerie plane crashed in Mali would be taken back to France. Mr Hollande was speaking after he met victims’ families in Paris. Fifty-four French nationals were on board flight AH5017. There were no survivors. Earlier, UN search teams scouring the remote site found the second flight data recorder from the plane.
El Universal says Venezuela’s governing United Socialist Party has begun its first congress since President Hugo Chavez died in March last year. Party leaders have urged delegates to consider proposals that would help consolidate the programme of social reforms initiated by Mr Chavez in 1999. The conference comes after months of anti-government protests across the country. The opposition blames the economic crisis on failed left-wing policies. The government says the protests are part of a right-wing plot.
The Globe reports health officials in Sierra Leone have confirmed that an Ebola patient who fled from a hospital in the capital has died after handing herself in. The 32-year-old hairdresser and her parents, who are suspected to have the virus, have been taken to the east of the country where the only Ebola treatment centres and laboratory are located. The woman was the first known confirmed Ebola case among residents of the capital city, Freetown
La Republica says Pope Francis has called for nature to be protected from criminal abuse during a visit in the southern Italian town of Caserta, near Naples, in a region long blighted by illegal toxic waste dumps and the pervasive grip of the Camorra mafia. He witnessed widespread garbage-burning while flying over the Campania region in his helicopter.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports fast food workers from across the USA voted to escalate their efforts for $15-an-hour pay and union membership by using nonviolent civil disobedience. More than 1,300 workers gathered in a convention in centre in suburban Chicago to discuss the future of a campaign that has spread to dozens of cities in less than two years.
Berliner Zeitung says German police have arrested a suspect 52-year-old paedophile, accused of having sexually assaulted, over the past 20 years, 175 minors, most of whom pre-adolescent, including mentally disabled children. Petra Hertwig, prosecutor for the city of Cottbus, said the man was arrested when a 14-year-old mentally handicapped child was found in his apartment in southern Berlin.
Metro reports an investigation has been launched following claims a judge fell asleep in court, causing a child rape trial to be halted. The complaint is that Recorder Philip Cattan nodded off as a young alleged victim was giving evidence via video-link in the trial of John Quigley, 49, who denies a number of sex offences including the rape of a child under 13..
Sky News says the first female commander of a front line warship in the 500-year history of the Royal Navy has left her battleship while an investigation is carried out into claims she had an affair with a shipmate. Commander Sarah West, 42, had been in charge on board HMS Portland, a Type 23 frigate, since May 2012.
Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon has revealed she had a relationship with David Bowie in the 1980s. Sarandon, who met the singer while shooting film “The Hunger”, describes it as a “really interesting period” and Bowie as “extraordinary” in a Daily Beast interview. They split because she didn’t want children.
London’s The Sunday Times reports Nick Clegg has demanded that Russia be stripped of the 2018 World Cup in the wake of the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. FIFA has already rejected calls to change the 2018 host. Responding to German politicians who called for Russia to be boycotted, the world football governing body said the 2018 tournament could be a “force for good”.