The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
Times of Malta reports that an 83-year-old man has admitted a hit and run car crash in Lija. It also reports that 10,000 University library books are missing
The Malta Independent quotes the MUT calling for more protection for teachers who are provoked by students.
In-Nazzjon leads with a judgement by the Gozo court that German children were taken from Malta illegally by German social workers.
l-orizzont reports how the trade unions are firmly against proposals by the Employers’ Association for changes to the Employment and Industrial Relations Act.
The overseas press
The Washington Post reports US military aircraft have conducted yet another airstrike on Islamic State artillery in northern Iraq. Pentagon spokesman Admiral John Kirby said the attack was targeted at the jihadist artillery being used against Kurdish forces defending the city of Erbil.
Al Jazeera says violence and hostilities resumed between Israel and Hamas after a 72-hour ceasefire when a barrage of rockets was fired from Gaza into Israel, which responded by launching air, navy and artillery strikes.
Middle East Monitor quotes Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal saying Algeria would never accept Libya turning into another Afghanistan or Islamic Caliphate. Commenting on the sidelines of the African-American summit, Sellal said sending troops to restore order was not a solution. Sellal also met with US Secretary of State John Kerry after the summit to discuss the situation in Libya.
Tribune de Genève front the decision by the World Health Organization to declare the West African Ebola epidemic that has killed nearly 1,000 people an international public-health emergency. WHO declaration represents a call to member states and private donors to boost funding and efforts to battle the worst Ebola outbreak in history, as a surge in cases over the past two days has overwhelmed major aid organizations.
Pravda says five Ukrainian army officers have been arrested for alleged war crimes. The officers were among more than 400 soldiers who crossed into Russia on Monday. They were housed by Russian border guards in a tent camp near Gukovo, in Russia’s Rostov region, after surrendering their weapons. Many have since returned to Ukraine.
Meanwhile, AFP reports the United States has warned against using the humanitarian crisis in eastern Ukraine as a pretext for an invasion, saying such a move would be “completely unacceptable”. The warning came after Russia proposed setting up humanitarian corridors to come to the aid of civilians in east Ukraine who are fleeing violence as Kiev’s forces battle to re-take the main city of Donetsk.
Germany has formally asked Italy to provide a German version of the website dedicated to its six-month EU presidency, which began on July 1. AGI says Germany’s Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, wrote a letter to Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini containing the request, to which Rome has agreed. The website http://italia2014.eu is currently available in Italian, English and French, but German is one of the official working languages of the EU.
Jeune Afrique reports two men in Sudan have died from their traumas and injuries a few hours after being lashed as punishment for drinking alcohol and disturbing the peace. The news was denounced by the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies, which said the two men were arrested separately in Port Sudan on the Red Sea.
According to Christian Science Monitor, large majorities of Americans – as big as 780 per cent – say illegal immigration threatens the American way of life and places an undue burden on the economy. The data represent a shift from past polls, raising the possibility that the border crisis has affected attitudes.
Mail & Guardian reports the trial against Oscar Pistorius for the murder of top model Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year came to its conclusion on Friday after five months in Pretoria’s High Court, with the prosecution and defence presenting their closing arguments. The trial began on March 3. Presiding judge Thokozile Masipa announced that she would give the verdict on September 11.
New Straits Times says one woman has been arrested and more than a dozen – mostly foreigners – were being sought by Malaysian authorities after images of a nudist sports festival triggered outrage in the Muslim-majority country.