The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times says Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando has raised questions on the nomination of Louis Galea to the European Court of Auditors. It also reports that Malta has objected to new Frontex rules.
The Malta Independent says Gonzi and Muscat took opposite sides on the Louis Galea appointment to the Court of Auditors. The PM said Galea was very suitable for the post while Muscat said the PM was losing his party's best elements. The newspaper also reports that the number of operations at Mater Dei rose by 2,800 last year over the previous year.
In-Nazzjon quotes the Prime Minister saying the PN would be remembered as the party whih created jobs which respected human dignity.
l-orizzont says Joseph Muscat insisted yesterday that Air Malta should not be sold. The government later also confirmed it would not sell the airline.
The overseas press:
Mexico's Reforma reports gunmen have killed 13 people - most of them youngsters - and wounded 17 others in a house where a high school party was in full swing. The shooting took place in Ciudad Juarez, the city on the border with the US state of Texas.
The US administration has been speeding up deployment of defences against potential Iranian missile attacks in the Arabian Gulf. The move, reported by the Washington Post and the New York Times, involves placing specialised ships off the Iranian coast and anti-missile systems in at least four Arab countries, which were not named.
The People's Daily quotes Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi warning that US plans to sell 4.6-billion-euros worth of arms to Taiwan would harm Chinese efforts to unify peacefully with the island.
The International Herald Tribune reports that Haitian police have charged 10 members of a US Christian group, as well as two Haitians, with child trafficking after they allegedly tried to cross into neighbouring Dominican Republic with 33 survivors of the country's devastating quake.
Addis Admass reports Libyian leader Muammar Gaddafi has failed in his bid to stay on as president of the African Union for another year. At the annual AU summit in Ethiopia, leaders from 53 African countries chose the president of Malawi, Bingu wa Mutharika, to take his place. Col Gaddafi used his farewell speech to call for political unity in Africa.
Deutsche Welle reports that Germany's Economic Minister Rainer Bruederle has rejected the idea of a rescue fund for risk-taking financial institutions. At the conclusion of the World Economic Forum in Davos, which was clouded by divisions over fiscal reforms, he said his government did not want a situation where banks got a risk-free assurance from nation states.
Moscow Times says Russian police have arrested hundreds of protesters who had gathered in Moscow and St Petersburg to protest Kremlin policies. Several opposition leaders were reportedly among the detained.
The New York Times announces UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has appointed outgoing European Commission vice president Margot Wallstrom as his special representative for fighting sexual violence against women and children in conflict. Wallstrom said she would lobby for sexual violence in war to be recognised as a war crime.
Manchester Post reports Wayne and Coleen Rooney are being sued for €4.6 million by James Grant Group (JGG), the management company, for loss of earnings. The England and Manchester United forward split from JGG when his agent, Paul Stretford, left the company and took his two star clients with him in 2008.
In Malaysia, The Star reports a court has ordered two lovers to pay a fine of four buffaloes and a pig after they were found guilty of having an affair to compensate their communities for their tryst. They were also fined €216 each. The man's wife filed a complaint last year after finding her husband in shorts and her colleague in a sarong at the man's second home. The court rejected their claim that they were just "best friends".
The Egyptian Gazette reports wide celebrations a Egypt secured a record seventh Africa Cup of Nations title, after beating Ghana 1-0 in a tense final in Angola. Egypt assistant coach Shawky Garib paid tribute to Ghana's performance, after the Black Stars overcame a slew of injuries to come close to claiming their first title in 28 years.