Latest news bulletin | August 1st – Midday
Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond - latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:0019-year-old Chinese swimmer Panzale breaks his own world record in the man's 100 metre freestyle.
00:14Paris residents and tourists have shared their thoughts on whether or not they would swim in the Seine River.
00:19Olympic triathletes swam in the Parisian waterway on Wednesday after days of delays and uncertainty over water quality concerns.
00:26Organisers say the latest tests of the famed river showed compliance with quality standards.
00:31The announcement came after elevated levels of bacteria delayed the men's triathlon race from Tuesday.
00:37I don't know. I'm a bit of someone who thinks water can be dirty.
00:42Like we swim in here and there can be little things touching your legs.
00:46But I don't know. If they test it and they say it's OK, I will trust the professionals.
00:51But I'm not sure if I would swim in it.
00:54While some visitors are not keen on the idea, others say they will be happy to swim in the river.
00:59Yeah, I would because I also swim in when it's hot.
01:03When the weather is hot in Amsterdam, I also swim in water over there.
01:07So, yeah, it's good. Yeah, I would.
01:10Officials hope that after so many years where swimming in the Seine was unthinkable,
01:14Parisians and visitors alike will start to feel that it's safe to go back in the water
01:18when they see Olympians and Paralympians leading the way.
01:25A district court extended the pre-trial detention of French citizen Laurent Vinotier,
01:32accused of espionage in Russia on Wednesday.
01:36The authorities accused Vinotier of failing to register as a foreign agent
01:42while collecting information about Russia's military and military technical activities.
01:49Vinotier works for an NGO and was arrested in Moscow in June.
01:57His pre-trial detention is expected to last until September 5th.
02:05Vinotier was arrested in Moscow last month as tensions have flared between Moscow and Paris
02:11after French President Emmanuel Macron's statements raised the possibility
02:16of deploying the country's troops in Ukraine.
02:29Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, accused of being the mastermind behind al-Qaeda's September 9-11 attacks
02:36on the United States, has agreed to plead guilty, according to the New York Times,
02:42as well as Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hassawi.
02:46All held at the Guantanamo Bay US Navy base for years without trial will plead guilty
02:53in exchange for the prosecution to spare them with the risk of the death penalty.
02:59According to US media, victims' families were informed in a letter by chief prosecutor
03:06stating that the men would admit to all charges, including the murder of 2,976 people.
03:13While Republicans slammed the deal and Trump's running mate J.D. Vance said
03:18we need a president who kills terrorists, not negotiates with them.
03:26The termination of commercial flights to Russia plus the closure of Finnish border crossings
03:32has brought hundreds of foreigners to Estonia.
03:35Most are trying to go to Russia for work or to visit their relatives.
03:40The most trying part of their journey are the now long waiting hours at the Narva border point.
04:03Every day, about 300 people queue up in front of the border crossing point.
04:08Their waits may last up to six hours, local residents claim.
04:13In order to save time, people even take a taxi from Tallinn to Narva.
04:33Nineteen-year-old swimmer Pan Zanle from China has broken his own 100-meter freestyle world record
04:42by finishing in 46.40 seconds.
04:46His victory keeps China on top of the medal table with nine golds.
04:55The hosts are stably in the medal table top spots.
04:59Most of the credit goes to swimming prodigy Léon Marchand,
05:04who won his second Paris 2024 gold medal in the men's 200-meter butterfly final.
05:11In tennis, Novak Djokovic beat Germanist Dominic Köpfer to earn a spot in the men's singles quarterfinals.
05:20Spain's Rafa Nadal ended his Olympic campaign with a defeat in the men's doubles
05:27as he and Carlos Alcaraz lost to the US.
05:31A happy story from shooting, Guatemala won their first-ever gold medal at the Olympics with Adriana Ruano.
05:40Ruano started her career as a gymnast, but after damaging six vertebrae at 16, she switched to shooting.
05:49In Wednesday's final, she set the Olympic record in the women's trap.
05:57World Record
05:59World Record
06:01World Record
06:03World Record
06:05World Record
06:07World Record
06:09World Record
06:11World Record
06:13World Record
06:15World Record
06:17World Record
06:19World Record
06:21World Record
06:24World Record
06:26World Record
06:28World Record
06:32In the sprawling park northeast of Paris, visitors can travel the world in just a few minutes
06:38without ever leaving the French capital.
06:41Fifteen countries have set up their hospitality houses in the Parc de la Villette,
06:46allowing visitors to discover different cultures, taste local food
06:50and even perhaps meet some Olympic athletes.
06:53The biggest house is unsurprisingly Club France, which can welcome up to 20,000 people.
06:59Next door is the second biggest one, the Team Netherlands house.
07:04Surrounded by a sea of orange, the official color of the country,
07:07visitors can watch some of the competitions during the day and later dance the night away.
07:13It's a vibe to be all around Dutch people. Everything is orange.
07:17You have Dutch food here, Dutch clothes, so we're trying to make a little home for the Dutch people.
07:25Crossing the park's canal is the vibrant India house.
07:28The organizers highlighted the country's rich culture,
07:31where visitors can see traditional carpet weaving and also get some Olympics-inspired henna tattoos.
07:38I will keep an excellent memory of this Indian house.
07:44Just a couple of minutes away is the Mongolia house,
07:47decked out with yurts and showcasing traditional activities like knuckle bone shooting and archery.
07:54This is the first time in the history of the Olympics that so many countries are gathered in the same place,
08:00and visitors are clearly taking advantage of this mini-trip around the world.
08:05First we visited Casa Mexico and saw one of the athletes, Gibran.
08:10Then we visited Casa Brasil and had a drink with Acai.
08:14Then we saw a very interesting fight here in Casa Mongolia.
08:18Other houses include the Brazil house, where visitors can play beach volleyball and basketball or sip a cool cocktail.
08:25The houses will be accessible to visitors during the whole period of the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer in Paris.
08:33Sofia Katzenkova reporting.
08:39Iran has warned Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's assassination will be punished.
08:47Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the crime by Israel will face a quote harsh and painful response.
08:56Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran after attending the inauguration of Iran's new president.
09:04Israel had vowed to kill him and other leaders of Hamas over the group's October the 7th attack on Israel.
09:13An Israeli military spokesman declined to comment on the matter.
09:19This will not be renewed and will not break the will of the Palestinian people,
09:23because these assassinations and this expensive Palestinian blood will remain the fuel of the battle with the occupation for freedom and independence.
09:32The government press office of Israel released a photo of Ismail Haniyeh stating quote
09:38Hamas' highest leader was killed in a precise strike in Tehran.
09:44Hamas' military wing said that Haniyeh's assassination takes the battle to new dimensions and will have major repercussions on the entire region.
09:53In the West Bank, the internationally backed Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas also condemned the attack,
09:59calling it a quote cowardly act and dangerous development.
10:08Lebanese cabinet members have met a day after Israel launched a deadly strike on Beirut
10:15with a spokesperson warning the attack hinders peace in the Middle East.
10:19IDF officials say the assault killed a top Hezbollah commander allegedly responsible for a deadly rocket attack on Israeli controlled Golan Heights.
10:50The strike hit an apartment, killing one and injuring four.
10:58I live in the building behind me.
11:00At around 4 or 3 o'clock, there was an attack.
11:04It was not a rocket, it was a missile.
11:07It was the first strike.
11:09Ten seconds later, there was the second strike.
11:12As you can see, the entire area is occupied.
11:15Israelis are concerned mounting retaliatory attacks could precipitate wider conflict.
11:21People basically waiting all this last year for a much greater war.
11:27Maybe this is the cue that it will be open.
11:32Israel and Lebanon have exchanged near daily strikes for the past ten months.