Close to 6,000 active Covid-19 cases – Malta News Briefing – 29th June 2022

1745- Afternoon update

Times of Malta says the busy Siġġiewi-Żebbuġ junction is to be upgraded to facilitate traffic flow and ease travel time, Infrastructure Malta said on Wednesday.

MaltaToday says Minister for Active Ageing Jo Etienne Abela has ordered an internal investigation, after an 83-year-old resident went missing from St Vincent De Paul home.

Newsbook says says celebrating Mass on the occasion of the Feast of St Peter and St Paul on Wednesday, Archbishop Charles Scicluna warned that “our roots cannot grow in concrete and cement.”

TVM says the pandemic caused 580 couples to postpone their wedding from the time the first case of Covid-19 was registered in March of two years ago.

Covid-19 Temporary Permits for Outdoor catering cancelled

Temporary permits issued to restaurants and cafes to extend their outdoor seating have been revoked, Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo said. “All catering establishments which had this temporary permit have received a letter informing them that the permit has stopped,” Bartolo told Times of Malta.

Covid-19 Active cases close to 6,000

Health authorities found another 570 new cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday, according to data published online. The number of active cases now stands at 5,958. Malta Independent

Explosion in Rabat

An operation is currently under way at a farm in Lunzjata, limits of Rabat, where there was an explosion followed by a fire at 6.30am. The police said the cause of the explosion is not yet known. They said that although some suspected that fireworks may have been stored inside, it could also be a chemical reaction to a fertiliser. – Times of Malta

Traffic Accidents

A woman was grievously injured on Tuesday when she was hit by a parked Mazda in Msida that moved off its place. The victim, a 23-year-old Italian, was taken to Mater Dei Hospital by ambulance.

In Siġġiewi, a young man who was riding a skateboard was also grievouly injured when he was hit by a car in Triq Mgr Mikiel Azzopardi. The accident happened at 10pm. The police said the 15-year-old victim, who lives in Siġġiewi, was hit by a Volkswagen Golf that was being driven by an 18-year-old man who lives in Ħamrun. – Times of Malta

Court orders that Gaddafi’s million at BOV are to be returned to Libya

Over €96 million in money held by Bank of Valletta by the heirs of the late son of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, will have to disbursed in favour of the Libyan state, as a six-year case finally wraps up with a decision in favour of the plaintiff, the Libyan Attorney General. The Libyan Attorney General had also accused Bank of Valletta of violating know-your-customer rules that should have prevented it from opening an account for Gaddafi in the first place. – Malta Today

Melvin Theuma’s phantom job

Fromer OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri and murder suspect Yorgen Fenech are amongst five people that are expected to face charges in the near future over the granting of a phantom government job to Melvin Theuma. The other three individuals are former head of customer care at OPM Sandro Craus, private secretary Anthony Mario Ellul and former CEO Anthony Muscat. Malta Today

Housing prices

Housing prices have doubled since 2013, a study published by Grant Thorton and Dhalia on Malta’s property showed Tuesday.  The findings show that between the first half of 2013 (2013H1) and the first half of 2022 (2022H1) house prices increased by 100%. This means that, on average, a property that sold for €100,000 in 2013H1 would have been selling at €200,000 in 2022H1. Malta Independent