The following are the top stories in the national and international press today.
Times of Malta says what was being advertised as “the biggest music festival in Malta”, set to take place between today and Monday, will not happen, with
ticket holders unsure whether they will be refunded. In another story it quotes Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon saying the planning authority has overseen the introduction of 14 new development policies since Labour’s return to power.
In-Nazzjon reports that the mother of an 18-year-old suffering from iscoliosis is appealing to the authorities to take immediate action for the family to be assisted to stop or mitigate their son’s suffering.
The Malta Independent says parents of disabled children who visit the Child Development Assessment Unit are having to deal with motorists who selfishly park in spots reserved for the disabled when they take their children to hospital for appointments.
L-Orizzont reports on the release of the pre-budget document by Finance Minister Edward Scicluna. The document titled 'Creating opportunities not dependence' was also presented to the social partners at the MCESD.
International news
LBC Radio says the crises in Iraq and Ukraine will dominate talks as world leaders meet in Wales for the two-day biennial Nato summit. The 28 heads of Nato states will be joined by a further 27 leaders from partner countries and heads of world bodies including the UN, EU, IMF and World Bank. The two days will be dominated by discussions on Ukraine and how to respond to Russian aggression.
Meanwhile, Kyiv Post says President Putin has called on Russian-backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine to “stop advancing” and urged the Ukrainian army to withdraw their troops from the region. He said a permanent ceasefire deal brokered by the OSCE in Europe could be reached as early as Friday.
Le Soir reports the EU has decided on a series of new sanctions to be imposed on Russia. These new restrictive measures concern access to financial markets, defence, civilian/military dual-use goods and sensitive technology.
Le Monde says France has stopped delivery of the first of two Mistral assault navy ships to Russia, saying the conditions were “not right” because of Moscow’s recent actions in Ukraine. Paris had hitherto resisted pressure to stop the delivery as part of Western sanctions against Moscow.
CNN reports US Vice President Joe Biden has issued a sharp warning to Islamic State militants, saying after the United States was done grieving the death of two American journalists, their killers would be followed “ to the gates of hell until they are brought to justice”. At event on the New Hampshire-Maine border, Biden described them as “barbarians” and repeated President Obama’s earlier statement that “Americans would not be frightened or intimidated by the heinous acts”.
Meanwhile, AGI says US air strikes have killed 45 IS terrorists in Falluja, central Iraq. US fighter aircraft also bombed IS headquarters in Mosul.
The BBC quotes Libyan officials saying a Libyan military jet has crashed into a block of flats near the new parliamentary building in Tobruk, and killing at least three other people, including a child. The jet, controlled by forces loyal to former General Khalifa Haftar who have been battling Islamist militias, crashed after developing a “technical fault”.
Reuters reports the UN estimates $600 million in supplies would be needed to fight West Africa’s Ebola outbreak, as the death toll from the worst-ever epidemic of the virus topped 1,900. Addressing the press in Washington, WHO director-general Margaret Chan said there were more than 3,500 cases across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone and close to 400 deaths in the past week.
Il Tempo says the leader of the Italian anti-establishment Five-Star Movement, Beppe Grillo, wrote on his blog that the Dublin Convention should be cancelled and that there should be low-cost flights from Lampedusa to any destination in Europe an illegal migrant chooses. The Sicilian island of Lampedusa is the destination for thousands of illegal migrants from Africa and the Middle East.
Times of India says a 16-year-old girl was raped and killed in West Bengal for protesting a popular tribunal’s sentence against her father in a commercial dispute. It was the latest in a seemingly unstoppable spate of rape/murder cases in the Asian country.
USA Today says a Detroit man who killed an unarmed woman who banged on his door at night was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Theodore Wafer, 55, was convicted of the second-degree murder of Renisha McBride, 19, who was drunk when she crashed her car near his home in suburban Detroit.
According to Il Mattino, three teachers are under house arrest in Naples and face allegations of aggravated abuse after students, including some with disabilities, said they were beaten. Parents said the students had gone home with bruises and welts.
The German magazine Bunte, reports the seven time Formula 1 world Champion Michael Schumacher “could return home by Christmas”. He has been hospitalised in Lausanne since June 16 following his emergence from the coma after a December 2013 skiing accident.