TOP OF THE AGENDA

Fires cause widespread disruption

SNCF has warned rail passengers who can postpone their trip to do so. Credit: Reuters 

A series of fires have hit French high-speed rail lines, hours before the Paris Olympic Games opening ceremony. As Hugh Schofield reports from Paris, fires were started at three points on TGV lines running west, north and east of the French capital. A fourth arson attack on the line running south to Lyon and the Mediterranean was foiled. France's state-owned rail company SNCF described them as a "massive attack aimed at paralysing the network”, with an estimated 800,000 passengers expected to be affected by delays or cancellations that could last the whole weekend. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said security forces are looking for the perpetrators of the "acts of sabotage" that were carried out in a "prepared and coordinated manner".

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• Opening ceremony: More than 300,000 spectators are expected to attend the event in the heart of Paris that will see thousands of Olympic athletes sailing down the River Seine.

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• Get the latest: Crowds have begun to form at stations in Paris and also at the Eurostar hub in London's St Pancras station. Follow real-time updates.

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• More Olympics news: For BBC Sport's build-up to the Games, follow the live coverage here.

WORLD HEADLINES

• War in Gaza: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has met US President Joe Biden and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Vice-President Kamala Harris, who called for a ceasefire in Gaza. Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama has publicly endorsed Ms Harris.

• Mexico's Sinaloa cartel: US federal agents in Texas have arrested two of the world's most powerful drug lords, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

• North Korea cyber-crime: State-sponsored hackers are attempting to steal nuclear and military secrets from governments and private companies around the world, the UK, US and South Korea have warned.

• Papua New Guinea: Officials have launched an investigation into a gang attack in a remote area of the country in which at least 26 people, including 16 children, were killed. 

• Jasper, Alberta: Firefighters are trying to save as many buildings as possible from huge, fast-moving wildfires that have destroyed up to half of the historic Canadian town, a popular tourist resort.

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