These are the main headlines of the local and international newspapers.
The Times quotes Labour MP and surgeon Anthony Zammit saying that during the two-hour violent robbery in the early hours of Tuesday, robbers threatened to cut off his fingers. He was beaten, gagged and had a sawn-off shotgun pointed at his forehead.
The Malta Independent says the government has received 1,683 suggestions on local council reforms.
In-Nazzjon reports that the Gozo Tourism Association is insisting on the construction of an airstrip for fixed-wing aircraft in Gozo.
l-orizzont leads with a human story: the plight of a 23-year-old baby in need of a marrow transplant.
Church newspaper Il-Ġens Illum quotes the Bishop of Gozo, Mgr Mario Grech, saying that the plight of couples whose marriage fails is a deep wound for the Church.
The Press in Britain…
The Daily Star says most UK troops in Iraq will be withdrawn by the middle of next year.
According to The Daily Express, two 24-hour strikes by baggage handlers on August 25 will bring the airport system to a halt, causing millions of holidaymakers to experience "chaos".
The Daily Telegraph says the pound has suffered its worst run against the dollar since 1971 over fears that the British economy is heading for recession.
The Daily Mail says Britain is suffering a repossessions crisis, with the number of homes at risk at its highest level since the troubled 1990s.
According to The Financial Times Lehman Brothers are in talks with potential buyers over the sale of its £21bn portfolio of commercial real estate to replenish its balance sheet.
The Mirror says that Peaches Geldof's new husband has confessed he isn't exactly sure who his father-in-law Sir Bob is.
The Daily Herald reports that a group of leading cancer specialists has urged the government to drop its "simplistic" waiting time targets for treatment.
The Independent says that this weekend is the biggest weekend in UK sporting history - since British athletes at the Beijing Olympics can win at least nine gold medals.
According to The Scotsman, Chris Hoy, who won gold in the team sprint, is on course to become Scotland's greatest ever Olympian. This is his second gold.
And elsewhere…
Like most of the world media, The International Herald Tribune leads with the armed conflict between Georgia and Russia over the Georgian break-away region of South Ossetia. It reports Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has signed a French-brokered ceasefire as the world held its breath to see if Russian troops would withdraw. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is in Tbilisi, said it was time for Russia to comply with the terms of the truce. There were indications that Russia is not yet fully complying with the ceasefire.
Die Welt reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel clashed with an unapologetic Russia President Medvedev over the conflict during talks in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. Merkel criticized much of Moscow's war while Medvedev stood firm and justified Russia's military action in Georgia, calling it humanitarian intervention.
Pravda reports that Russia has threatened a nuclear strike against Poland after it signed a deal with America to host the anti-missile shield. Russia's deputy chief of staff said that Poland was "exposing itself to a strike".
Ukranian Observer reports that President Viktor Yushchenko has asked Medvedev for urgent talks over the presence of the Russian fleet at the Black Sea port of Sebastopoli. Yushchenko says he wants a bi-lateral agreement “in case of military action similar to that at the begining of August” – an indirect reference to the Russo-Georgia conflict.
La Nacion leads with the swearing in of Fernando Lugo as president of Paraguay, ending six decades of rule by the conservative Colorado Party.The former Roman Catholic bishop Lugo pledged to tackle corruption and combat poverty.
Himalayan Times says members of Nepal's governing assembly have chosen the leader of the former rebel Maoists, Prachanda, as the country's first republican prime minister.
Globe and Mail reports that the leader of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change is in Johannesburg to attend a weekend regional summit. Morgan Tsvangirai arrived in the South African city a day after the authorities at Harare international airport had stopped him from leaving the country by briefly confiscating his travel documents.
Il Gazzettino says a flight between the Irish Republic and Crete had to be diverted to Venice after fights broke out on board. Six people were removed from it.
Corriere della Sera quotes art experts saying a little-known portrait, previously attributed to an anonymous German artist, is likely to be a drawing made by Leonardo da Vinci.