University to fly flag at half mast as a sign of respect towards slain journalist

Flags will fly at half mast at the University of Malta over the next three days following a request made by former Alternattiva Demokratika chairperson and lecturer Arnold Cassola.

The university rector accepted Cassola's request, intended as a sign of respect towards the slain journalist. In a letter to the rector, Cassola said the university, as the country's highest educational institution, had the duty to protect freedom of thought and expression.

"We should be at the forefront to stand up to this threat to democracy in our country," Cassola wrote, describing Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder a a mafia-style assassination.