The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press.
Times of Malta reports how a man who served as an intermediary in a failed big business deal was threatened by a number of Romanians who told him: 'We know where your children go to school.'
The Malta Independent says a new controversy has been ignited - the new code of ethics may allow ministers to keep private practices.
In-Nazzjon says Qala Council was not consulted on the government's plan for a new marina, cruise liner terminal and apartments on the Qala coast.
l-orizzont says a Maltese member on a European committee has been tweeting misleading information on power tariffs in Malta.
The overseas press
Libya Herald reports top members of the unofficial government in Tripoli say a breakthrough is highly unlikely when UN-backed peace negotiations aimed at forming a unity government resume tomorrow in Morocco. Blaming UN envoy Bernardino Leon for being secretive and overly optimistic heading into first-round negotiations in Algiers, where talks opened on Wednesday, the group says one of the UN drafts for a possible agreement contains details it had not agreed to.
The Wall Street Journal says a US judge has ordered Argentina to pay some $5.2 billion to some 500 creditors seeking repayment on the same favourable terms given to other holders of the South American country’s restructured debt. In a 26-page ruling, US District Court Judge Thomas Griesa ruled that by refusing to make payment to some hedge fund and individual bondholders of its defaulted debt, while making payment to other creditors, Buenos Aires was in violation of an equal treatment provision in its contracts.
VOA News quotes the White House saying the US government will on Monday begin notifying individuals affected by the massive cyber attack on the Office of Personnel Management. Publicly, federal officials have been hesitant to assign blame as the investigation into the data breach continues. Several US officials said the hackers were believed to have been based in China but that it was not yet known if the Chinese government or criminal elements were involved.
Deutsche Bank AG is looking into possible money laundering transactions by some of its clients in Russia which could exceed $6 billion, a source familiar with the matter has told Reuters. The bank said it had suspended a small number of traders in Moscow and was conducting an internal review, but gave no details of the reason for the suspension.
Al Watan says forces loyal to Yemen’s former president have attacked “several locations” on the Saudi border, sparking a battle in which four Saudis and dozens of the Yemenis were killed. The Saudi-led coalition said they repelled an attack from the Yemeni side targeting several locations in Jazan and Najran – referring to two Saudi border districts.
El Universal reports further violence around Mexico as the country prepares for tomorrow’s weekend’s mid-term elections when voters will choose Congressmen, governors and mayors. A radical teachers’ union attacked the offices of five political parties in Chiapas state in the south of the country while in Guerrero state, explosive devices were thrown into a conservative party’s office. A number of candidates and numerous campaign workers have also been killed in drug-related violence.
Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta has rejected calls for his resignation after prosecutors named him in a criminal investigation into forgery, money-laundering, conflict of interest and tax evasion. Adevarul says prosecutors allege he forged invoices for fictitious work and used the money he received to buy two luxury apartments in Bucharest. He said he would not heed President Klaus Iohannis’ call to resign, saying he only parliament could unseat him
Ansa quotes Italy’s head of state Sergio Mattarella calling on the authorities to clamp down on corruption. During a visit to Milan’s Expo 2015 trade fair, Mattarella said, “The fight against illegality and corruption must be severe.” His comments came a day after 44 people including businessmen and politicians were arrested in a major anti-mafia probe of graft and embezzlement centred on Rome. Italy is ranked 69 out of 174 countries in Transparency International’s 2014 corruptions perceptions index.
Sky Turk reports two people have been killed and more than 100 injured after successive explosions hit an opposition rally in south-eastern Turkey, with the country’s prime minister saying the incident was designed to undermine peace two days ahead of legislative elections. Menwhile, a Turkish court has ordered journalist Ozgur Mumcu to stand trial for defaming President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The court indicted Mumcu, a journalist for Turkish daily newspaper Cumhuriyet, for an opinion piece on Erdogan published on 18 March entitled “Tyrant and a coward”. He faces up to four years and eight months in prison if convicted.
La Repubblica says a 50-year-old religious education teacher has been arrested in Sicily for sexually abusing teenage migrant boys. Giuseppe Abbate, who had been granted temporary custody of them, was caught in the act. Police began monitoring Abbate, a former provincial councillor, after a complaint from a teenage Egyptian boy now living in a children’s home in Rome.
The Chinese People’s Daily reports a Chinese paid for his new SUV using four tons of coins. But his decision cost him dearly as he had to enlist the help of a team of 10 people to count the coins and transporting them, making several trips with a truck, because all banks consulted refused to endorse his project.