The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
Times of Malta says a tender has revealed likely finch trapping dates. It also reports on the shock following the sudden death of a Marsa footballer.
The Malta Independent says massages with full extras are still being advertised online.
MaltaToday says no MTA board has been appointed after the term of the old one expired in May.
In-Nazzjon says a container full of contraband cigarettes has 'disappeared'.
l-orizzont reports that trees which cost €5000 each are dying. They had been planted at the new Valletta bus terminus.
The overseas press
Ansa reports Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has set the priorities for Italy's duty presidency of the European Union in the second half of 2014, confirming it would try to steer the union away from austerity towards full-blown growth policies. He said Europe must also step up the fight against record unemployment and work together to combat waves of migrants from war-torn or troubled lands crossing the Mediterranean.
Reuters reports Libyans head to the polls today for the country's second national election since the 2011 ouster of Muammar Gaddafi.
Practically all British nationals lead with the news that former News of the World editor Andy Coulson has been found guilty of conspiracy to hack phones. His predecessor Rebekah Brooks was cleared of all charges in the phone-hacking trial. The Daily Mail says David Cameron's judgement has been called into question after his former spin doctor was found guilty of conspiracy to hack phones.Cameron has apologised and said hiring him was “the wrong decision”. The Daily Telegraph leads with the phone-hacking trial, saying it cost an estimated £100m, making it one of the most expensive criminal trials in history.
Kyiv Post quotes the Ukrainian authorities saying nine people have been killed when a military helicopter was shot down near Sloviansk. The attack took place a day after insurgents vowed to observe a ceasefire proposed by Kiev. Pro-Russian separatists have been in control of the city since April.
The New York Times says the UN estimates that 423 people, both military and civilian, have been killed between April 15 and June 20 in clashes in eastern Ukraine. Over the past two weeks the number of Ukrainians who have fled their homes has doubled, with 15,200 moving within the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Dawn reports at least a person has been killed after shots were fired at a passenger plane as it landed at Peshawar airport in Pakistan. Security officials said the Pakistan International Airlines plane had just arrived from Saudi Arabia.
VOA says US State Department says it’s working with the government in Khartoum to ensure that Meriam Ibrahim, the Sudanese woman for renouncing Islam was annulled, is now allowed to leave the country safely. Following her release from prison on Monday, the woman was detained at Khartoum airport.
Mail & Guardian announces that thousands of South Africa’s platinum miners have decided to return to work later today after reaching a three-year deal to end a five-month long strike. However, due to their long absence from work, the miners have to undergo training and health checks and it could take months for the mines to return to full production.
According to the BBC's Arabic website, quoting sources close to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, American drones have bombed areas held by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) on the border between Iraq and Syria. Last week, US President Barack Obama had not ruled out the possibility of military intervention against the jihadists while specifying that American troops would not be redeployed to Iraq.
Meanwhile, The Washington Times says the first US troops deployed to assist the Iraqi army in combating the growing Sunni militant insurgency have arrived and begun work. The Pentagon has said nearly half the 300 special operations soldiers promised by US President Barack Obama are in Baghdad or on the front lines of the fight. The rest are expected within days.
Al Ayyam says the Iraqi army has announced that it has managed to “bravely” reject a jihadist attack on the largest oil refinery in the country and has now regained control over the plant. For a few hours Sunni militias had gained control of the plant in Baiji, north of Baghdad, a refinery that guarantees one-third of the country's needs for refined oil.
Chicago Sun-Times reports Chicago had won the battle with Los Angeles and San Francisco to house a first-of-its-kind interactive museum and warehouse for movie mogul George Lucas’ formidable collection of artwork and “Star Wars” movie memorabilia. The museum would house a collection that includes examples of the special effects he developed and a scale model of the fictional space craft captained by Han Solo.