Papers report doubts over Iraq battle

Nearly a week after the US armed forces claimed to have killed 54 militants in the Iraqi town of Samarra, some newspapers raise more doubts about what really happened.

The Independent's reporter - who has travelled to the town - says local people are adamant that only eight people died, and most of them were civilians.

The Daily Mirror prints an e-mail purportedly written by one of the soldiers who took part in the gun battles in which he, too, disputes the official version of events.

"Most of the casualties were civilians" he writes.

Questioning the Americans' use of overwhelming force, he adds: "It does not take a George Patton to see we are using the wrong tactics".

University fees

In the Sun, Chancellor Gordon Brown gives his backing to Tony Blair over university top-up fees, saying it is right that the prime minister makes it "one of the great reform issues of this government".

He predicts they will "win through" the looming Commons vote on the issue.

But, according to the Daily Express, some ministers are prepared to quit if Mr Brown's prediction comes to pass, while the Financial Times says that if Mr Blair loses the vote, he will have no one to blame but himself.

Commonwealth meeting

As the Commonwealth attempts to resolve the dispute over the suspension of Zimbabwe, the Daily Telegraph urges it to stand firm.

The paper accuses President Robert Mugabe of "cruelly betraying" Zimbabwe's black majority, despite his attempt to present the issue as a black struggle against white neo-colonialism.

Mr Mugabe and his allies, the Telegraph says, "must be prevented from riding roughshod over the Commonwealth's commitment to democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights".

'Rip-off'

The Times, on its front page, says a review carried out for the Treasury has found evidence of a "home loans rip-off".

The report, according to the paper, will say that millions of homeowners who stay loyal to a particular lender are subsidising cut-price mortgage deals offered to first-time buyers and people seeking to remortgage.

The Independent expects Mr Brown to order such special deals to be restricted.

There is better news for consumers in the Express, which announces in its front page headline that the "sales frenzy starts early".

It reports that many stores have started to cut prices, in an attempt to turn around disappointing figures for pre-Christmas shopping.

The Telegraph reckons a game of chicken is being played out on the high street between consumers and retailers.

While some stores hope that a shopping binge is imminent, others have lost their nerve and started their sales.

The Independent reports that a town in West Yorkshire is to become the caviar capital of Britain.

Wakefield - which, the paper says, is more often associated with brass bands and rugby league - will be the location for a 14-hectare farm for sturgeon fish. The business is a lucrative one, with caviar selling at £1 per gram.

World Cup

The draw for the qualifying rounds of the World Cup -- which places England, Wales and Northern Ireland in the same group -- has football writers licking their lips in anticipation.

"The Battle of Britain" is the front page headline in the Daily Mirror, which also provides fans with a brief guide to one of the other teams in the group, under the headline: "So where exactly is Azerbaijan?".

Several papers express fears of crowd trouble at the games involving the home countries, with the Sun warning that the authorities face a "security nightmare".

The Scotsman is certainly happy that Scotland have been excluded from what it dubs the "Group of Hype".

'Sinister' poaching

A public school's attempt to poach a promising rugby player from his Welsh comprehensive is reported in the Times and the Mail.

Thirteen-year-old Kristian Phillips received the approach after scoring five tries and kicking four conversions for his school - Ystalyfera, in the Swansea Valley - as it defeated Dulwich College by 65 points to 10.

The sports master at Dulwich was so impressed with Kristian that he sent his parents a school prospectus and information about scholarships.

Teachers at Ystalyfera were infuriated, and accused Dulwich of using "underhand and sinister tactics". Kristian was not impressed either: he's staying put.