The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times says the Prime Minister now sees a need for the Public Accounts Committee to summon witnesses on the power station contract. It also says Christina Sammut was waiting for her new boyfriend when she was shot on Saturday.
The Malta Independent says the Prime Minister has hinted as a possible divorce referendum next year. It also says that a man was caught handing heroin to a prisoner at the law courts.
In-Nazzjon reports that the PN raised €436,135 in a fund raising campaign yesterday.
l-orizzont says the Prime Minister has finally conceded to the summoning of witnesses on the power station. It also reports that the former Chief Justice is being secretly given alcoholic drink in prison.
The overseas press
Corriere della Sera predicts Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, could survive a confidence vote by a narrow margin. Berlusconi has said he was confident of winning despite the defection of former ally Gianfranco Fini, who has taken around 40 centre-right MPs with him. If the government fell, Mr Berlusconi would be obliged to offer his resignation.
Pravda reports hundreds of people protested against the Russian government at two separate rallies in Moscow, with opposition activists calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and nationalists demanding greater rights for ethnic Russians. The rallies follow violent clashes on Saturday between police and about 5,000 football fans and nationalists.
Koha Ditore says Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci has claimed victory in the country's first parliamentary vote since declaring unilateral independence from Serbia. He addressed supporters hours after an exit poll gave his Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) 31 per cent of the vote. Its main rival and ex-junior coalition partner, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), was second with 25 per cent. If the results are confirmed, Mr Thaci will need support from other parties to form a government.
The Daily Telegraph reports British police have been searching a property north of London as part of an investigation into Saturday’s bombings in Sweden. The man suspected of being responsible for two blasts in a busy shopping area in Stockholm was killed in the explosions. An Islamist website identified him as an Iraqi-born man who, reports said, had studied in the UK.
Abrar reports Iranian politicians have called for the expulsion of Britain’s ambassador to Teheran for highlighting concerns about human rights. Last week,in remarks published on the British Embassy’s website, Simon Gass said that nowhere where civil society activists were under greater pressure than in Iran. A group of hardline students also held a protest rally in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, trampling and then setting the British flag on fire and denouncing the United Kingdom as "Iran's most evil enemy."
Het Parool announces that Dutch police have arrested a 27-year-old man on suspicion of sexually abusing up to 50 children at childcare centers in Amsterdam, and for the distribution of child pornography. The investigation was launched after child pornography believed to have originated from the Netherlands was found in the United States.
Afghan Sun reports eight soldiers, including six from the international assistance force in Afghanistan, have been killed. They were manning a check-up point near Kandahar when a vehicle laden with explosives was detonated.
Al Jazeera says fierce winds and heavy rain and snow have lashed eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries for a second successive day. The storms have sunk a ship off the Israeli coast, closed ports and disrupted shipping in the Suez Canal. Flights have also been delayed to and from many airports in the region. The storms have ended a long drought in Lebanon, Syria and Israel and come just a week after more than 40 people died in a forest fire.
USA Today reports blizzards sweeping across the mid-western states of the US have kiled two people, forced the cancellation of some 1,600 flights and closed major highways because of deep snow. The inflatable roof of the Metrodome sports stadium in Minneapolis collapsed after a snowfall of 43cm. The governor of Wisconsin declared a state of emergency.
Al Ahram says Egypt would reopen beaches at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh after a spate of shark attacks temporarily forced their closure. New measures were put in place to ensure the safety of swimmers after a German woman was killed and four other tourists injured in a series of attacks a week ago.
Manchester Evening News reports former Manchester United and England international Sir Bobby Charlton has welcomed 26 of the 33 rescued Chilean miners to the UK. The men, who were freed in October after two months trapped underground, will be guests of honour at Old Trafford for Manchester United's Premier League game against Arsenal on tonight. They will be given a tour of the ground and have a chance to meet the players before the match.