The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
Times of Malta reports that according to the data from the latest census, 24,000 people in Malta are unable to read and write. It also reports that the number of people who did not collect their voting document is at an all time high.
The Malta Independent says the GWU will make €500,000 from the lease of the towers near the Addolorata cemetery to Transport Malta.
l-orizzont reports that 21,800 voting documents were not collected. It also says discharges from Arrow Pharm have been halved.
In-Nazzjon says unemployment is up, year on year.
The overseas press
Euronews says Latvia and Slovakia join Malta today in voting for the European Parliament, while voting started yesterday in many other countries
Le Monde reports all eyes will be on Marie Le Pen’s National Front in France National, which enters the arena on Sunday where the latest polls continue to give it 23 per cent of the vote, ahead of Jean-François Copé’s UMP (right, 21 per cent) with President Hollande’s Socialist training in third place at 16 per cent.
Sky News confirms the triumph of Nigel Farage’s UKIP eurosceptics in UK local council elections. The Conservative-Liberal coalition took a beating of unprecedented proportions losing 300 seats to Labour and the UKIP.
Ad Dustur reports Jordan’s Christians are preparing for a papal visit they hope will boost their standing in the Middle East. Pope Francis arrives in Amman today for the first leg of a three-day trip which will take him to the Palestinian Territories and Jerusalem with a message of interreligious dialogue and peace for the troubled region.
The Washington Post says US Secretary of State John Kerry has agreed to testify to Congress on the circumstances surrounding the attack on the US diplomatic mission in Benghazi. Republicans say the Obama administration misled the public about the nature of the incident by initially linking it to protests against an anti-Islam video.
AFP says Iran has for the first time in six years addressed concerns about “possible military dimensions” of its nuclear programme. A new report by the international nuclear watchdog reveals Tehran handed over information related to detonators that could be used for several purposes but also for a nuclear weapon.
Kyiv Post says 20 pro-Russian insurgents have been killed after an attack by some 500 activists on a convoy of soldiers outside the eastern Ukraine village of Rubizhne. The news comes after Vladimir Putin said Russia would recognise the outcome of Ukraine's presidential election as he criticised the West for imposing economic sanctions on his country.
As leaders of Thursday's military coup in Thailand tightened their grip on power, Bangkok Times reports former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and a number of family members and politicians have been detained and kept for several hours before driven to an undisclosed location. Army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha also met key officials, telling them reform must come before any elections.
O Globo quotes a Brazilian defence spokesman saying it was mobilizing 157,000 soldiers and police to ensure security during the World Cup, which opens in 20 days against a backdrop of violent protests and strikes.
France 24 reports the mayor of a village in north-western France has been castrated and killed by a jealous husband. Dominique Leboucher, 55, was murdered by a man who accused him of having an affair with his wife and then reportedly killed himself.