These are the news selected as reported on Malta’s portals for Wednesday.
Rescue ship Sea-Watch 3 has been granted permission to shelter in Malta’s waters without docking, as weather conditions are quickly deteriorating. The Times says that 32 migrants rescued on December 22 are still aboard the vessel as neighbouring countries are refusing to allow them into their harbours. MaltaToday says that the medical team aboard the ship has expressed concern about the health of the three children among the migrants. Agreements over redistribution of the migrants have not been reached by EU leaders.
Over 1,400 irregular immigrants arrived in Malta during 2018 while 2,200 lost their lives trying to cross the Mediterranean. Net News reports that 49 immigrants are currently aboard the Sea-Watch 3 while search operations are ongoing for another 72 people.
Authorities in Kuwait are investigating claims that citizens of the Persian Gulf country have acquired Maltese passports. The Malta Independent quotes a parliamentary secretary who warned that nationals acquiring second passports will lose their Kuwaiti citizenship.
A backlog of applications being processed by the Stipends Office has left students at MCAST without their maintenance grant. LovinMalta publishes an email sent by the College asking students to have a little more patience after they were promised they would receive the funds by the end of the year.
The Planning Authority and the Resources Authority have sealed off an area in Ta’ Qali after Newsbook revealed that it was being using to dump construction waste. The website said that the police has taken no action about the case.
The funeral for Chris Portelli, who died in a tragic accident at the power station in Delimara, was held today. Fr Hayden Williams described the 49-year-old as “God’s work in our times”, in a story carried by TVM. A father of two, Portelli died after hitting his head in a fall at work last week.
The EU is advising members to re-assess national calls for the installation of 5G infrastructure, after security concerns about Chinese company Huawei were raised globally. The Shift News says that the risks involved may be wide-ranging and reports that the telecoms company has two memorandums of understanding in place with the government in Malta.
A road collision involving four cars in St Julian’s is causing heavy and slow traffic in the direction towards Paceville. One News advises drivers to avoid the area around the tunnels.
