The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
The Times carries an interview with Raymond Mintoff, Dom Mintoff’s brother, who recalls his charm and temper.
The Malta Independent says the Dom Mintoff funeral cortège leaves Mater Dei Hospital today.
In-Nazzjon highlights investment in specialised medical care, with 1,400 having been sent for treatment abroad this year.
l-orizzont also carries anecdotes about Dom Mintoff .
The overseas press
According to the BBC reports the leaders of Germany and France were set to hold talks in Berlin on whether to give Greece more time to make the cuts required by its debt bailout. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande would also meet Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras later this week.
Kathimerini says that meeting Samaras yesterday, eurozone chief Jean-Claude Juncker kept the door open for a change to the bailout terms. But he warned the Greek people had to be aware the country was facing its "last chance" to stay in the eurozone. Juncker reiterated the next €33.5 billion installment of its second €130 billion bailout depended on a credible and robust strategy to reduce the Greek debt. Samaras promised that Greece would finalise a package of cuts worth €11.5 billion euros.
Tribune de Genève reports Russia has become the 156th member of the World Trade Organisation following nearly two decades of negotiations. Russia was one of the world’s major economies to join the Geneva-based institution having previously expressed concern about the potential influx of western goods and services.
Al Ahram says Egypt has formally asked the International Monetary Fund for a $4.8 billion loan. The IMF has avoided making specific conditions for the loan but it seeks a cohesive government plan for restarting economic growth and reducing a deficit that has grown to $23.6 billion, some 8.7 per cent of gross domestic product. A key part of that is likely to be reducing subsidies that take up a third of the government budget every year. Touching those subsidies, however, could bring social upheaval, since they keep commodities like fuel and bread cheap for a population of around 82 million, some 40 per cent of whom live near or below the poverty line.
The Times reports the British Prime Minister has held talks with the presidents of the United States and France on how to get more support to the opposition in Syria. President Obama and David Cameron have warned the Syrian government that any use of chemical weapons would force them to review their approach to the conflict. Both men also want more to be done to channel aid to Syrian refugees. About 2.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. President François Hollande said his government would raise this at the UN.
According to Reuters, the United Nations said on Wednesday that Iran appeared to be providing President Assad with funds, weapons and intelligence support in his bid to crush the opposition. Syrian rebels also said Tehran has sent Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah fighters. Syrian government forces have meanwhile renewed their attacks in Damascus, killing at least 35 people in some of the fiercest shelling and artillery fire.
News aggregator Index Mundi says at least 52 people have been burned and hacked to death in ethnic clashes over cattle grazing rights in Kenya. Gangs armed with machetes, bows, and spears locked villagers in their huts, set them alight and then butchered anyone who tried to escape. Police said 31 women, 11 children and 10 men were killed. Most had been hacked to death. They described it as the worst single attack since violence rocked the country after a contested election four years ago.
ABC reports China has blocked internet searches for the term "body double" amid rumours that the wife of fallen political star Bo Xilai used a stand-in during her murder trial. Chinese state television on Monday showed a brief clip of Gu Kailai standing in the dock as she was handed a commuted death sentence for the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood. But her appearance, looking notably plumper than in earlier photographs that have appeared in foreign media, sparked suspicions that the woman in court might actually have been someone else. China's censors moved quickly to muzzle the rumours and on Wednesday the term "ti shen", or body double, remained blocked on many popular websites in the country.
Addis Ababa’s Reporter says the authorities in Ethiopia have postponed a special session of parliament which had been expected to endorse the appointment of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Hailemariam Desalegn as interim prime minister to replace Neles Zenawi who died last Monday. No reason of the postponement has been given.
CNN reports Nasa’s Curiosity rover mission has made its first successful test drive on Mars. The robot, which landed on Mars two weeks ago, rolled forward for about 4.5 metres, rotated and then reversed 2.5 metres. Scientists said the 16-minute drive, has confirmed that the soil on the red planet is indeed firm.
Voice of America says the number of US military personnel killed in the war in Afghanistan has surpassed the 2000-mark with more than half the deaths coming in the past 27 months. Troops were now preparing to withdraw along with their international counterparts as Afghan forces take increasing security control well ahead of the 2014 deadline.
Britain's traditionally pugnacious tabloid press pulled its punches this morning as it deals with a self-imposed ban on publishing photos of Prince Harry frolicking naked in a Las Vegas hotel room. Two grainy photos, published on US gossip website TMZ, showed the naked prince, in compromising positions with a nude woman. The site reported that the prince was in a group playing "strip billiards".The royal family has confirmed that the photos were genuine, but declined to comment further. Because the photos were taken in a private place, the voluntary press code that all UK tabloids have signed up to prohibits their publication.
El Pais reports an 80-year-old woman has tried to restore a prized fading 19th century fresco in her local church – with disastrous results. Ecce Homo by Elias Garcia Martinez has held pride of place in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza for more than 100 years. The woman took her brush to it after years of deterioration due to moisture. Jesus Christ now looks like a very hairy monkey in an ill-fitting tunic. Cultural officials said she had the best intentions and hoped it could be properly restored.