The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times leads with the incident where two Maltese fishermen suffered injuries in a clash with tuna protesters yesterday. It also reports that the government and medicine importers will have a make or break meeting on fair medicine prices today.
The Malta Independent discusses the tourism situation. It says the problem is the hotels.
In-Nazzjon says the EU has adopted its growth targets for the next 10 years. It also leads with the incident involving Maltese fishermen. A third story announces the launching of a government postgraduate scholarship scheme.
l-orizzont asks if Enemalta will be held responsible for the possible health hazards of a flyash dump near Birzebbuga. It also says that the admission of the For.Um of trade unions in the MCESD will create a balance between employers and trade unions. In another story, a GWU official is reported saying that the elimination of summer half-days for civil servants is non-negotiable.
The overseas press:
L'Echo says EU leaders meeting in Brussels have agreed to call for a tax on global financial transactions at the G20 in Toronto next week. The summit also addressed the EU debt crisis, with leaders agreeing to have stress tests of their nations' banks published to reassure investors and dispel fears that further EU members are in danger of bankruptcy. Also, they approved Estonia's bid to join the euro currency and adopted a new set of sanctions against Iran in a further effort to stall its disputed nuclear programme.
Frettabladid reports another proposal considered by EU leaders concerned Iceland's bid to join the European Union. Officials announced they were ready to begin membership talks with the island nation despite an existing banking row with Britain and the Netherlands. The dispute is over the 2008 collapse of Icesave, an Icelandic bank, which caused losses for primarily British and Dutch customers of up to four million euros.
Kathimerini says public transport in Athens ground to a halt as workers walked off the job for five hours to protest against social security reforms. The stoppage came a day after the government unveiled plans making it easier for companies to fire workers by raising the number of layoffs allowed and enabling lower compensation payments.
Times of Central Asia reports Uzbek refugees displaced by ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan have started trickling back to their wrecked homes in Osh, desperate for food and water that aid agencies have had trouble delivering to the thousands camped out on the border. The UN said 400,000 refugees have beenuprooted by the recent ethnic violence,
Expressen says Sweden's parliament has narrowly passed a government proposal to begin replacing old nuclear reactors in the country by the start of next year. There are currently has 10 nuclear reactors, providing about 40 percent of national energy demand. The close vote, 174-172, officially reversed a 1980 national referendum that ordered the phasing out of nuclear power in the Nordic country by 2010.
Koelner Stadt-Anzeiger says that in an unexpected move, Hannelore Kraft, regional head of the Social Democrats (SPD), has formed a minority coalition with the Greens in the North Rhine-Westphalian parliament. Kraft will now replace Juergen Ruettgers of the Christian Democrats (CDU) as state premier. The SPD and Greens will have 10 more seats than the CDU and FDP together, but they are one seat short of an absolute majority.
The Financial Times says BP head Tony Hayward was first heckled by a protester and then accused of "stonewalling" US lawmakers at a tense hearing investigating the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Mr Hayward, who has 28 years' oil industry experience, replied at least 10 times that he could "not recall" or "didn't know". Metro says Mr Hayward was "hauled over the coals" by US politicians as they vented their anger over the oil disaster.
De Telegraaf reports a court in the Netherlands has sentenced five Somali men to five years in prison for attacking a cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden last year. It's the first case of its kind to be tried in Europe.
The Jerusalem Post says tens of thousands of black-clad ultra-Orthodox Jews have staged mass demonstrations on Thursday to protest a Supreme Court ruling forcing the integration of a religious girls' school. Parents of European, or Ashkenazi, descent at a girls' school in the West Bank settlement of Emanuel don't want their daughters to study with schoolgirls of Mideast and North African descent, known as Sephardim. The Ashkenazi parents insist they aren't racist, but want to keep the classrooms segregated, as they have been for years, arguing that the families of the Sephardi girls aren't religious enough.
The Sun reports a piranha, regarded as the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world, has been caught in a British pond. The UK Environment Agency said the red-bellied piranha, which trives mainily of a diet of fish, insects and worms, was probably placed in the pond once it became too large for its tank after being kept as a domestic pet. Its introduction posed a serious threat to native wildlife.
Metro quotes a UK study claiming that a typical barbecue meal could contain double the recommended daily maximum of salt. Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) said a meal of a hotdog with mustard, a burger with cheese and barbecue sauce, a piece of marinated meat, a helping of coleslaw and potato salad and plain crisps with dips can add up to 12.11 grams of salt. The recommended daily maximum for an adult is 6 grams a day.
The Herald Sun reports that a magistrate in Victoria, Australia, accused a 20-year-old man of contempt and jailed him for 30 days for blowing bubble gum while looking at the him. Mirza Zukanovic was appearing on an assault-related matter. However, Victoria's Supreme Court granted him bail last night after an appeal by his lawyers.
Bild reports a German soccer fan was being treated for an ear injury allegedly inflicted by a vuvuzela. Sven Wipperfurth suffered pain and hearing loss after an anonymous trumpeter unleashed a blast from the controversial instrument right next to his ear. Players and managers have branded them a distraction and called on authorities to impose a ban - a sentiment that Mr Wipperfurth shares.