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| Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has faced mounting criticism over his government's handling of the murder of Caruana Galizia (AFP Photo/Christof STACHE) |
Valletta
(AFP) - Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat will step down on January 18,
party sources told AFP Saturday, following mounting criticism of his response
to the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Party insiders
said he would step down once those behind the killing had been charged and once
his Labour Party has chosen a new leader.
"He
always said that he will be leaving soon and he feels that now is the time to
go," said one party source.
First
however, he wanted to see that the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder was solved on
under his watch, as he had promised, sources added.
"After
the mastermind or masterminds are arraigned in court, he plans to announce that
he will be stepping down and that there will be a leadership election on
January 18," a party source told AFP.
The sources
did not say when 45-year-old Muscat would announce his decision -- or whether
it would be via a televised announcement -- but they stressed that he would not
stay beyond January 18.
The news
came amid mounting pressure from Caruana Galizia's family and protesters on the
streets, who have cried foul over his handling of the affair.
Mounting
pressure
The
escalating murder investigation has rocked the tiny Mediterranean island and
reached the highest rungs of the country's politics, with two ministers and
Muscat's chief of staff Keith Schembri stepping down from their posts this
week.
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Thousands
of demonstrators took to the streets of the capital Valletta Friday evening
after Muscat refused to give immunity to the main suspect in the 2017 murder to
disclose what he knows about the case (AFP Photo/STRINGER)
|
Thousands
of demonstrators took to the streets of the capital Valletta Friday evening
after Muscat refused to give immunity to the main suspect in the 2017 murder,
tycoon Yorgen Fenech, to disclose what he knows about the case.
It was the
sixth such demonstration in two weeks.
Fenech has
identified Schembri as the mastermind behind Caruana Galizia's 2017 car bomb
killing, according to sources.
Schembri
was arrested on Tuesday, but his release on Thursday sparked accusations of a
cover-up.
Muscat, who
has vowed to resign if links were found between himself and the murder, said
Friday he would remain in power, telling reporters he wanted "this case to
be closed under my watch".
But Caruana
Galizia's family, who have accused the prime minister of protecting his
long-time chief of staff have called for him to go.
"We
share Malta's shock and anger at the release of Keith Schembri," the
family said in a statement.
"At
least two witnesses and multiple pieces of physical evidence implicate Schembri
in the assassination of our wife and mother."
They
accused Muscat of playing "judge, jury, and executioner in an
assassination investigation that so far implicates three of his closest
colleagues".
'Disgraceful'
Muscat said
Friday he had recused himself from the decision on whether to grant immunity to
Fenech.
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| Protesters reacted angrily after Yorgen Fenech, a tycoon whose business interests span the energy and tourism sectors, was released (AFP Photo/STRINGER) |
The prime
minister later said he had reported Fenech to the police for attempted
blackmail, saying the mogul had threatened to implicate him in the affair if he
was not given a pardon.
Fenech, a
tycoon whose business interests span the energy and tourism sectors, was
arrested on his yacht last week after an alleged middleman in the murder, taxi
driver Melvin Theuma, was offered a pardon to identify those involved.
That arrest
was followed swiftly by the resignation of Schembri and tourism minister Konrad
Mizzi, while economy minister Chris Cardona said he was "suspending
himself".
Caruana
Galizia, a popular journalist and blogger described as a "one-woman
WikiLeaks", exposed cronyism and sleaze within the country's political and
business elite.
Before she
was killed, she had alleged that Schembri and Mizzi had been involved in
corruption. She had named Cardona in a separate case.
Leaked
emails revealed in court appeared to show both Schembri and Mizzi stood to
receive payments from a Dubai company called 17 Black, owned by Fenech.
The Caruana
Galizia family said Schembri and Fenech have the same doctor, who reportedly
served as an intermediary, passing secret notes between them.
'Fear for
my life'
A Maltese
court is expected to rule Monday on a request by Fenech for the chief
investigator in the case, Keith Arnaud, to be removed, amid allegations he also
had close ties to Schembri and the prime minister.
After his
release on bail Fenech told journalists he feared for his life.
"This
is happening in the EU, right now. Where is the voice of the European
Commission or other EU leaders?" Robert Barrington, former head of
Transparency International in the UK, said on Twitter.
The
European Parliament is planning to send a mission to Malta, a parliament source
told AFP.
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