Car crashes into Gzira restaurant and leaves woman dead

Jan 18 2023

A woman was unfortunately killed this morning in Gzira after a car crashed into a KFC outlet after having reportedly damaged a petrol station early on Wednesday.

The incident reportedly took place around 1am in Testaferrata Street, with the driver currently in police custody.

The victim, a 30-year-old Turkish woman, was rushed to hospital but unfortunately succumbed to her injuries later on. It was revealed to Times of Malta by police sources that people who tried to assist the woman were aggravated by the driver.

The driver was also violent when in confrontation against police officers and had to be tasered down before being arrested.

This is an ongoing investigation and an ongoing story.

#MaltaDaily

Greta Thunberg detained by German police during eco-protest in small village

Jan 17 2023

20-year-old activist Greta Thunberg has been detained by the police during a demonstration in Germany protesting the demolition of Luetzerath.

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The small village in Western Germany is being demolished to make way for a coal mine expansion, with a group of protestors gathering the make their voice heard on the concerning issue.

Police report that it is not the first time the Swedish activist has been approached by the police in Luetzerath, as she and other protestors “stormed” the edge of the reportedly “extremely dangerous” mine zone.

Politicians and climate activists across the globe have expressed concern at the tiny hamlet’s demolition, with the country moving forward to adapt its attitude towards coal use since Russia’s invasion of ukraine despite pledging a commitment to eliminate coal use.

Thunberg was carried away from the protest site and held with other demonstrators for identification.

#MaltaDaily

Matthew Grech to be charged in court for conversion therapy breach

Jan 17 2023

Matthew Grech, a member of the pentecostal evangelical group River of Love, has revealed that he has just been charged with breaching Malta’s gay conversion therapy ban following a live-streamed discussion.

Grech said that he had been charged, along with the producers of PM News, which is run by Mario Camilleri and Rita Bonnici.

Grech is a former homosexual who ‘converted’ through his Christian faith, renouncing his sexual orientation. Grech also formed part of the ABBA political party.

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Grech said he will be arraigned in court on the 3rd of February on charges of breaching the ban on advertising gay conversion therapy. Gay conversion itself was banned in 2016 but advertising it became illegal this year.

Grech called this ‘political revenge’, pointing to how the charges come weeks after police charged satirist Matt Bonanno over a complaint by River of Love Gordon Manche.

#MaltaDaily

Total of 174,460 tourists visited Malta in November 2022

Jan 17 2023

During November 2022, a total of 174,460 inbound tourists were estimated to have visited Malta. 144,631 of said tourists visited the island for holiday purposes whereas 23,615 visited the island for business purposes.

The largest share of inbound tourists were aged between 25 and 44 (ranking at 40.7%), followed by the 45 to 64 age bracket at 35.4%.

The United Kingdom, Italy and France had the most residents making up the number of inbound tourists, making up 42.4% of the total.

The total nights spent went up 36.3% when compared to the same month in 2021, surpassing 1.2 million nights at 1,203,802 nights.

The largest share of guest nights at 81.1% was spent in rented accommodation establishments, whereas the average length of stay for total inbound tourists stood at 6.9 nights.

€144.1 million was surpassed as the total tourist expenditure for the month, which is up 55.8% over the same month in 2021. The average expenditure per night was estimated to be around €119.7.

The first eleven month of 2022 saw 2,150,174 inbound tourists, whereas the total nights surpassed 15.6 million nights. The total tourist expenditure was estimated to be at €1.9 billion, with total expenditure per capita decreasing to €889 from €914 in 2021.

#MaltaDaily