The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
The Times quotes the Prime Minister saying, in connection with the child sex abuse cases, that the justice process took too long. It also reports that the Vatican investigation of a fourth priest is still pending.
The Malta Independent says an ECB pledge to buy eurobonds has eased pressure on Spain and Italy. It also reports that the Curia’s Response Team is investigating another priest.
l-orizzont quotes Opposition finance spokesman Karmenu Vella saying the financial situation has been deteriorating since 2004. It also says that Charles Muscat (il-Pips) only spent nine years out of 16 years of custody at Corradino prison. He spent the rest at Mt Carmel Hospital.
In-Nazzjon gives prominence to a Finance Ministry statement saying that the opposition is sowing doubts in the financial situation in order to hinder investment.
The overseas press
The Washington Times quotes President Obama saying he hoped the downgrade of the US credit rating would give Congress a renewed sense of emergency to tackle the debt crisis. President Obama expressed his confidence in a live television statement that the US would weather the blow. He said he still believed it was necessary to raise taxes on wealthy Americans – something many Congressional Republicans have so far totally refused to accept.
Wall Street Journal reports world share prices showed further heavy losses. Wall Street finished the day more than six per cent down. The Dow Jones was down 5.55 per cent, the Nasdaq fell by 6.9 per cent and the S&P 500 Index dropped by just under 6.7 per cent. The drop came after rating agency Standard & Poor's cut the United States long-term credit rating by a notch from triple-A to AA+ on Friday. Last week, $2.5 trillion was wiped off world stock markets.
The Financial Times reports that in Europe, stocks plunged to a two-year low after markets enjoyed brief gains in early morning trading. Frankfurt closed down by more than five per cent, Paris was down by 4.7 per cent and London dropped by nearly 3.4 per cent. Madrid, meanwhile, sank 2.44 per cent and Milan dropped 2.43 per cent, reversing gains made after the European Central Bank announced it would invest in Spanish and Italian bonds earlier in the day. In a statement, the ECB said it welcomed announcements that both countries were committed to speeding up budget cuts.
Asian Observer says Asian markets were also down as a result of the ECB's decision. Arly this morning, Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 3.7 per cent, South Korea's Kospi lost five per cent, and Australia's ASX shed 3.8 per cent. On Monday, stocks in Hong Kong fell by four per cent, while those on the Bombay Stock Exchange dropped by three per cent.
All British nationals focus on the violence and looting which has spread to new areas of London and Birmingham by last night. The Daily Telegraph says it is 'the “Rule of the Mob” as police lost control as shops and cars were set ablaze as they struggled to contain the spiraling disorder on a third night of rioting. The Daily Star chooses a punk rock reference to call the unrest “Anarchy in the UK”. The Daily Mirror says Prime Minister David Cameron has been forced to cut his summer holiday in Italy to deal with the situation in which more than 200 people have been arrested.
The New York Times says the hotel maid who accused former IMF boss Dominique of sexual assault has brought a civil lawsuit against him. Guinean immigrant Nafissatou Diallo is accusing the French politician of carrying out a "violent and sadistic" attack that left her life “in shambles”. Strauss-Kahn has denies her allegations.
Al Bawaba announces that Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is in Damascus where he was expected to demand that President Assad ends the military crackdown on civilian demonstrators. A number of Arab nations have already similar demands and several have withdrawn their ambassadors.
Al Jazeera reports that the leader of Libya's rebel movement, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, has dismissed his entire executive committee, which functions as a cabinet. This came in response to the killing of the rebel military chief Abdel Fattah Younes last month. Some among the rebels have blamed an allied Islamist faction for his death and that there had been “shortcomings” in the way some members of the National Transitional Council had handled the matter.
El Mundo says nine former Salvadoran soldiers have turned themselves in to face charges that they shot dead six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter during El Salvador's civil war – one of the most infamous crimes in the 12-year conflict. They had been indicted in Spain under its universal jurisdiction law, which holds that some crimes are so grave that they can be tried anywhere. El Salvador will have to decide whether to extradite the nine to Spain.