Swan massacre makes Scottish papers

The shocking story of the swan massacre which took place out at sea in St Thomas Bay on Sunday has made it into Scotland’s leading daily paper, The Scotsman.

The report will at best, re-enforce Malta’s image as a country with an over-zealous hunting lobby and, at worst, could threaten its tourist industry at a time when figures for incoming tourists are already suffering.

In his report, entitled ‘Shocked Malta in uproar over hunters’ Tim Cornwell, the Deputy Foreign Editor, described how a crowd of onlookers had gathered to watch the rare sight of 10 large mute swans, gliding gracefully through the water, before three hunters on a speedboat shot at them.

Mr Cornwell describes how hunting, and particularly bird hunting, is a "passionate pastime" in Malta.

Three men were arraigned yesterday and charged in relation to the incident.