Malta and international press digest

The following are the leading stories in the Maltese and international press on Monday:

The Times says Dr Sant promised better quality of life at yesterday’s MLP mass meeting, while Dr Gonzi, speaking at Mosta, said the country’s future is at stake at this general election. The newspaper also reports AD insisting that last year’s extension of development boundaries was ‘illegal’. It reports in the inside pages the fire which destroyed three birdwatchers’ cars in Buskett.

In-Nazzjon reports Dr Gonzi urging supporters to judge the PN on its results and proposals. It carries a picture of yesterday’s mass meeting on its back page. In the inside pages it underlines the PN’s proposals for job creation, development in education and protection of the environment.

L-orizzont uses the front and back pages for a picture of yesterday’s MLP mass meeting. It says MLP leader Alfred Sant has promised 6,000 new jobs and faster economic growth.

The Malta Independent also leads with the mass meetings by the two main parties, quoting Dr Gonzi saying that the PN delivers and the MLP does not.

The Press in Britian…

Practically all the major British newspapers lead with Chancellor Alistair Darling’s sudden announcement yesterday afternoon that he was nationalising the beleaguered bank Northern Rock. Bids from the Virgin Group and the bank's own management team were not considered to protect the public's money well enough.

The Daily Herald accuses Premier Gordon Brown of taking Britain "back to the 1970s" after no private buyer was secured for Northern Rock.

As it digests the first nationalisation of a company since the 1970s, The Guardian says "Labour’s reputation for economic competence, the bedrock of its success, has cracked if not shattered".

The Daily Telegraph says the economic credibility of the Government suffered a "serious blow" with the Rock's nationalisation.The Daily Mail says the move "seriously dented" the Government's economic reputation.

"Unbelievable" is how The Times’ lead commentator starts his analysis of the news. It quotes Shadow Chancellor George Osborne saying Labour's reputation for economic competence had died, adding that the PM had "dithered his way to disaster".

The Daily Express looks at how taxpayers will be affected by the Northern Rock developments - and teams it with analysis of property sales, quoting figures which show that, in just one month, a massive bounce in the housing market has pushed up values by £7,500.

The Independent says the leader of the Church of Scotland has criticised anti-English sentiment north of the border.

The Daily Record reports a sergeant and two lance corporals from a Scots Army unit have been arrested for allegedly selling bullets and grenades to gangsters.

And elsewhere…

Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia dominates the world press.The New York Times focuses on the UN Security Council’s closed-door emergency session to discuss the move at the request of Serbia's ally, Russia. Moscow's ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, said that the Security Council should declare the move null and void because it violated a 1999 resolution. The council will discuss the issue further later today.

Ilaria Post reports massive celebrations by ethnic Albanians in the streets of cities and towns in Kosovo. Prime Minister Hashim Thaci used an address to parliament in Pristina, to proclaim that the Republic of Kosovo would be a sovereign and democratic state. This came after all 109 parliamentarians present in the assembly voted in favour of the move.

Le Courrier des Balkans reports that hundreds of Serbian youths have gone on the rampage in Belgrade, smashing windows at the US and Slovenian embassies and two McDonald's restaurants. Two hand grenades were thrown at the offices of NATO and the European Union in the northern-Kosovo town of Mitrovica, which is divided along ethnic lines.

Belgrade’s Blic says shortly after the cessation, Serbian President Boris Tadic rejected the move, calling it "unilateral and illegal". He vowed to retake the territory and reiterated Belgrade's determination to fight to prevent its breakaway province from gaining international recognition as an independent state.

Pakistan Times reports that voting is underway for a new parliament in elections shadowed by fears of violence and questions about the political survival of President Pervez Musharraf. Public opinion surveys have suggested that if the vote is fair, the Pakistan People's Party of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto will finish first, followed by another opposition party led by ex-premier Nawaz Sharif. The pro-Musharraf party -- the Pakistani Muslim League-- is trailing a distant third.

Cyprus Mail reports the Republic is set to get a new head of state after the incumbent, Tassos Papadopoulos, was defeated in the first round of the country's presidential election. Former Foreign Minister Ioannis Kassoulides came first, just a fraction of a percentage point ahead of left-wing candidate Demetris Christofias. They are to face each other in a run-off election next Sunday.

Jerusalem Post says Israeli troops backed by aircraft and tanks have clashed with Palestinian militants, killing three of them, in the latest assault on the Gaza Strip. More than 20 people were also wounded. The latest fighting came as Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert unveiled plans to reinforce Israeli homes near the border with Gaza.

Afghan Daily reports a suicide bomber has blown himself up in a large crowd killing around 80 men and boys gathered at a dogfighting festival in the south of the country. It is the worst single bombing in Afghanistan since 2001.

De Telegraaf says a 104-year-old Dutch cabaret singer, who once performed in Nazi Germany, has given a concert in the Netherlands for the first time in four decades. There were protests and tight security around the theatre in Amersfoort where Johannes Heesters appeared. Although Heesters insists he never espoused Nazi politics, he performed for Adolf Hitler and visited the Dachau concentration camp. Correspondents say many Dutch people have never forgiven him.