The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times says a Mepa bird study on migration has missed its deadline. It also says that Mepa has stopped unauthorised trenching works by Enemalta in Comino.
The Malta Independent says the commander of the AFM, Brig Martin Xuereb, is aiming for a leaner and more efficient AFM. It also says that a Libyan who led a Valletta demonstration in February has died in Brega.
In-Nazzjon says The Banker magazine has praised financial services in Malta. It also carries comments by Fr Rene Camilleri that divorce is no solution for marriage problems.
l-orizzont says the bodies of two foreign journalists killed in Misurata have been brought to Malta. It also says that 50 referendum votes in Dingli have disappeared.
The overseas press
France 24 quotes sources saying the French government wants to consider reintroducing temporary border controls within the visa-free Schengen zone for security reasons. It has called for a mechanism to suspend visa-free travel across the 25 countries – 22 of them EU member states – after an influx of thousands of migrants from Tunisia and Libya into Italy. The Italian government’s decision to grant 20,000 Tunisians temporary residence permits, allowing free travel in the passport-free Schengen zone, has angered France. President Nicolas Sarkozy is due to address the problem of migrants entering France through Italy when he meets Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday in Rome. The French president particularly wants to discuss how to improve cooperation on illegal immigration and boost the European Union’s Frontex border agency.
There has been widespread condemnation of the Syrian security forces’ use of live ammunition during the yesterday’s protests which has left 88 people dead and dozens injured. The International Herald Tribune says the United States has accused the Syrian government of using “outrageous force” against “peaceful protesters” to put down the unrest. President Obama said he condemned in the strongest possible terms the violence in Syria. The Times quotes British Foreign Secretary William Hague saying he was "extremely concerned" by the reports of deaths and casualties across Syria and urged restraint on the country's authorities. Le Figaro reports the French Foreign Ministry said it was "extremely concerned" by the developments, condemned the violence and called for those responsible to be identified, arrested and brought to justice.
Al-Jazeera said Friday’s events in Syria were the bloodiest since the uprising began more than a month ago as protesters took to the streets to mark what activists dubbed "Great Friday. A heavy security presence prevented protests from taking off in Damascus. The state news agency Sana denied that the security forces had used live ammunition and said the army has only used tear gas and water cannons "to prevent clashes between protesters and citizens and protect public property".
Local tribes in the city of Misurata have told the Libyan government that if the army could not deal with rebels there they would. AFP news agency quotes the Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim saying that the Libyan army would therefore withdraw from the country's third largest city and leave local tribes to resolve the conflict in either by talks or through force. He told journalists that the tribes there, loyal to Col Gaddafi, would not be as restrained as the army had been so far.
The Washington Times says US Senator John McCain, a former presidential candidate and a senior Republican leader on foreign policy, has called on Washington to recognise the rebel-led Transitional National Council "as the legitimate voice of the Libyan people". McCain also called the rebels "patriots" with no links to al-Qaida and they should receive Gaddafi assets that were frozen by other countries.
L'Osservatore Romano says Pope Benedict XVI consoled a seven-year-old Japanese girl, reassured a mother about her ailing son's soul and advised a Muslim woman that dialogue was the way to peace in Ivory Coast. In a push to engage the world online, the pontiff fielded their questions during an unusual Good Friday appearance on Italian TV, becoming the first pope to take part in a televised question-and-answer session.
The Los Angeles Times reports that a judge has sentenced US starlet Lindsay Lohan to 120 days in jail for violating her probation, along with community service at the Los Angeles County morgue and a women's centre. The court ruled that the 24-year-old had violated her probation for a 2007 drug and drunk driving offence when she allegedly stole a $2,500 necklace. Lohan's lawyer immediately announced the actress would appeal the sentence, which included 480 hours of community service. She was expected to be released on $75,000 bail.
Ansa says Italian police have seized 19 tonnes of damaged or contaminated Easter eggs and other sweets worth €500,000. The products were seized by Carabinieri responsible for food health and safety after more than 850 inspections discovered a large number of sweets covered in mould or parasites. Police found that 295 producers across the country had poor hygiene and food conservation practices and many products had exceeded their use-by date. Other producers were accused of falsely promoting Easter sweets as "hand-made" when they were actually manufactured commercially. Police also identified 316 individuals accused of faulty practices and were looking at fines or legal action against 32 sweet manufacturers, bakeries and cake shops.