The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Sunday Times quotes a former US ambassador recalling how the US had warned Malta about weapons transportation
The Malta Independent on Sunday says battles are raging in Libya after a surrender deadline expired. It also says that Maltco is objecting to the government splitting the gaming concession.
MaltaToday says the Gaddafi puppets in Malta are known.
It-Torca says funds for EU membership had come to Malta from Gaddafi’s Libya.
KullHadd reports that Finance Minister Tonio Fenech three weeks ago considered stepping down when he got wind of the Moody’s downgrade.
Il-Mument features directives by Ronald Reagan who had warned Malta against granting military access to Libya and other countries such as North Korea.
Illum quotes the head of a private sector body saying they had forgotten when the last foreign investment went to Gozo.
The overseas press:
Cities in the United States remain on high alert before a special day of ceremonies to mark the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. Voice of America says commemorations are taking place in all three sites where four hijacked airliners struck, killing nearly 3,000 people.
The Washington Post reports President Barack Obama has said the US remained vigilant against terrorism. Speaking on Saturday, he said the US was stronger 10 years on from the attacks. "As a resilient nation, we will carry on," he told Americans in his weekly address. The US president will travel to all three sites for the commemorations, part of a weekend of events to mark the anniversary.
Minneapolis Star Tribune says a memorial was unveiled at a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where one plane was brought down when its passengers who fought with the hijackers. Residents and tourists also formed a human chain in New York in memory of the dead and.
The New York Times says an official memorial to those who died is to be unveiled at the site of the World Trade Center, whose twin towers were destroyed in the attacks. As in previous anniversaries, the names of all the victims will be read out at the New York event. There will be pauses for silence at the exact times when two airliners smashed into the World Trade Center's twin towers, the third was crashed into the Pentagon and the fourth was forced into a field in Pennsylvania.
Al Ahram announces that the Egyptian government has accused activists who attacked the Israeli embassy in Cairo of damaging the country’s international reputation. It said they would be tried in emergency state security courts. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israeli remained committed to its peace treaty with Egypt.
Al Jazeera reports that the head of the Libyan National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, has flown to Tripoli for the first time since rebels took control of the capital. He was greeted by hundreds of supporters. The BBC says the IMF has recognised the NTC as the new government of Libya.
Al Arabiya reports that as Nato planes raided Bani Walid, one of Gaddafi’s last strongholds, the deposed leader broadcast a new audio message from hiding, calling on his followers to rise up and fight. Saying “this is the zero hour”, Gaddafi urged supporters to fight and said those who do not would go to hell.
Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior of Guinea Bissau has told Radio Diffusion Portuguese that Gaddafi would be welcomed "with open arms" in the west African country. He made the statement to journalists while attending the inauguration of Cape Verde's new president Jorge Carlos Fonseca. Guinea Bissau has not ratified the Rome Statute that established the International Criminal Court which has issued an arrest warrant for the fugitive Gaddafi.
East Africa Radio notes that Zanzibar has begun three days of official mourning after more than 200 people were killed when a heavy-overloaded ferry sank on Friday night. A survivor told Associated Press the ferry was carrying some 100 passengers more than its capacity of 600. The government of Zanzibar – a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania – said many more people were still unaccounted for.
Kathimerini quotes Greek Prime Minister Georges Papandreou promising that his country would make the spending cuts being demanded by its international creditors. Germany had warned that the next installment of the EU’s emergency aid to Greece might not be paid unless it did more to reduce its debts.
Asahi reports Japan’s trade minister Yoshio Hachiro has resigned after just eight days in office and apologised repeatedly for calling the evacuated area around a stricken nuclear power plant “a town of death”. Announcing his departure at a news conference late last night, he told reporters he was just trying to convey the seriousness of the situation when he made the remark on Thursday on a visit with other government ministers to the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. But those affected by the March 11 disasters, political opponents and even members of the ruling Democrats had strongly criticised his remark.
Il Gazzettino says the Russian film “Faust” has won the Golden Loin for the best picture at the Venice Film Festival. The film is the latest interpretation of the famous text by the German writer Goethe.