The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
All the Maltese newspapers feature front page pictures of celebrations by the Spanish team after winning the European Cup yesterday.
In other stories, The Times reports how two soldiers yesterday denied murdering a migrant. It also says that the first name has been recorded in the child offenders’ register.
The Malta Independent quotes Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi saying that rebel MPs may face further action.
l-orizzont also leads with the arraignment of the two soldiers. It also features Joseph Muscat’s comments on fuel prices.
In-Nazzjon says the PL’s policy is to remove those who disagree with it.
The overseas press
The Guardian reports that the chairman of Barclays bank, Marcus Agius, plans to resign as early as this morning following the scandal regarding the manipulation of data by his bank. The British-Maltese financier and businessman had been in the post for six years. US and British regulators imposed fines totalling $453 million (€358.6 million) on Barclays last week for submitting false data used in setting the London interbank offer rate, LIBOR – the average interest rate charged by leading banks in London when lending to other banks.
Financial Mirror says Cyprus has assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union for the next six months, less than a week after the government announced it would seek emergency loans. Cyprus said its presidency would work towards a better Europe – “more relevant to its citizens and to the world." It listed efficiency, sustainability, economic improvement, solidarity, social cohesion and better international relations as priorities of the six-month programme, expected to be unveiled in Brussels today.
Asahi Shimbun quotes Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda saying his country was facing the same risks as European states. His warning came days after he pushed through a divisive tax bill to reduce the country's huge debt. Japan has accumulated a huge public debt – more than double the GDP – and Noda has warned that the future of the world's third-largest economy rests on tackling it.
al bawaba says armed protesters seeking greater independence for Libya's east have ransacked the offices of the federal electoral commission in Benghazi. Witnesses said a group of about 300 men carried computers and ballot boxes from the building, before burning the election materials and breaking the computer equipment outside the electoral office. The attack comes less than a week before the North African country goes to the polls.
ABC reports the International Criminal Court expects Australian lawyer Melinda Taylor and three of her colleagues, who have been held in Libya, to be released later today. The group was taken into custody in Zintan last month while meeting with Saif al-Islam, the son of ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi. The four were detained after Libyan officials accused them of smuggling "dangerous" documents to Saif al-Islam. The court's president Sang-Hyun Song will travel to Libya ahead of the release.
AFP quotes the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, describing the destruction of Islamic shrines in the ancient Malian city of Timbuktu as a "war crime". The sites have been attacked for two days by Islamist rebels of Ansar Dine because they regard shrines as idolatrous.
The China Post says a pro-democracy heckler interrupted a speech by Chinese President Hu Jintao at the swearing-in of Hong Kong's new leader and tens of thousands of residents marched to protest Chinese rule on the 15th anniversary of the Asian financial hub's return to Beijing's control. In the ceremony, self-made millionaire Leung Chun-ying, 57, became Hong Kong's third chief executive. He has promised to address Hong Kongers' economic needs, including skyrocketing housing prices, which many blame on deep-pocketed mainland apartment buyers.
The Standard quotes Kenyan police saying at least 17 people were killed and more than 40 wounded on Sunday in grenade attacks on churches in the eastern Kenyan town of Garissa. The attacks were the latest in a string of incidents in the country since Kenya sent tanks and troops into Somalia late last year to fight al-Qaeda-linked Shebab insurgents. The Shebab have vowed to carry out revenge attacks so long as Kenyan forces remain in Somali territory.
Paris Match says drivers in France are now obliged to carry breathalysers in their cars – the latest measure aimed at cutting the number of alcohol-related deaths on the road. The idea is that with a breathalyser in every car, drivers who suspect they may be over the limit can test themselves and if necessary refrain from taking the wheel. The Sarkozy government, which gave the go ahead, said it hoped 500 lives might be saved every year.