The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
Times of Malta leads with the appointment of Jason Micallef as chairman of the V-18 foundation, a story also given prominence in In-Nazzjon. The newspaper also highlights questions asked on the possible role of Gayle Kimberly in a bribe request in the Dalligate scandal.
In-Nazzjon says the four PN leadership candidates will hold a joint reception to round off the PN leadership campaign.
L-orizzont says there are allegations of abuse by Chris Ciantar regarding overtime payments to his wife, employed in the same ministry where he was permanent secretary.
The overseas press
USA Today quotes a US a law enforcement official saying the suspects in the Boston Marathonbombing had originally planned to strike on July 4, but chose the race because it coincided with the time they had finished assembling the explosives.
Newsday report the Obama administration is rethinking its opposition to arming the rebels who have been locked in a civil war with the Syrian regime for more than two years. During a Pentagon news conference with British Defence Secretary Philip Hammond, US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said arming the rebels was one option that the administration was considering in consultation with its allies.
Libya Herald says Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of Libya’s former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, has appeared in court on charges of harming state security, but the judge adjourned his hearing until September 19 to allow his defence lawyers more time.
Al Jazeera quotes the UN's Food and Agricultural Organisation saying almost 260,000 people, half of them young children, died of hunger during the last famine in Somalia – a toll much higher than was feared at the time of the 2010-2012 food crisis.
Avvenire reports Pope Francis personally received retired pope Benedict XVI and prayed with him upon his return to the Vatican where he will reside in a converted monastery. Benedict will be joined at his new home by Archbishop Georg Gaenswein. His home includes a guest room for his brother Georg as well as an elevator.
O Globo says the remains of John Paul II will be put on show during the Brazilian World Youth Day to be held in Rio de Janeiro from July 23 to July 28. According to the event organizer, Father Arnaldo Rodriguez, a flask containing the late pontiff's blood and other relics are to be transported to Brazil on July 7, and will remain in the South American nation until October 13, where they will be held in exhibition at the city cathedral.
CBC reports the United States has called for North Korea to grant amnesty and immediately release a Korean-American sentenced to 15 years' hard labour for “hostile acts” against the state. Kenneth Bae, 44, a Washington state man described by friends as a devout Christian and a tour operator, is at least the sixth American detained in North Korea since 2009. The others eventually were deported or released without serving out their terms, after trips to Pyongyang by prominent Americans, including former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter.
The New York Magazine says Joanne Chesimard – better known as Assata Shakur became the first woman to make the FBI's list of most wanted terrorists and the reward for her capture was doubled to $2 million. In 1977, an all-white jury convicted Chesinard of killing a New Jersey state trooper, and she was given a life sentence.
Associated Press reports the teenage daughter of a woman who just revealed she abandoned her family 11 years ago has said the disclosure has angered her and she is not eager to restart their relationship. Morgan Heist, who learned last week Brenda Heist had surfaced in the Florida Keys, said the news has made her recall with bitterness the years of mourning she endured when she assumed her mother was dead and feared she'd been murdered.