Author: France 24

China took the lead in the 2024 Olympics gold medal rankings on Monday, while Armand Duplantis claimed a new pole vault record and Simone Biles slipped up in her last event at the Paris Games. 

The U.S. is deploying additional military might in the Middle East as a defensive measure with a goal of de-escalating tensions in the region, a White House official said on Sunday. More information with FRANCE 24 correspondent in Washington, Fraser Jackson.

US sprinter Noah Lyles Sunday took gold in the closest 100m final in modern Olympic history, becoming the first American to win the event since the 2004 Athens Games.

After three Grand Slam titles, UK tennis legend Andy Murray, 37, officially retired from the sport on Thursday after losing in the Paris Olympics, closing the door on a stellar yet injury-laden career.

The Israeli military said Thursday that it has confirmed that the head of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif, was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July. The announcement came a day after an apparent Israeli strike in the Iranian capital killed Hamas’ top political leader.

Simone Biles won her fifth Olympic gold medal as the US win the team event. France’s great judo hope has to settle for bronze. The triathlon is delayed due to water pollution. Also, basketball historian Lindsay Krasnoff, explains 3×3 basketball. Finally, French silver medalist Victor Koretzky talks to France 24 about his exploits.

Hamas on Wednesday said that its political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli strike in Iran, where he had been attending the inauguration of the country’s new President Masoud Pezeshkian. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also announced the death, saying Haniyeh’s residence in Tehran was “hit” and he was killed along with a bodyguard. Following the reported assassination, a senior Hamas official said that Haniyeh’s death “will not go unanswered”. Follow our liveblog for all the latest developments in the Israel-Hamas war.

On a five-day visit to China, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has vowed to “relaunch” economic cooperation with Beijing and “rebalance trade”. She has also sought to position herself as a potential mediator between China and the EU as the two blocs butt heads, especially on the issue of Chinese electric vehicle imports. In this edition, we look at what could make Meloni’s job harder.

Simone Biles is tipped to win her first Olympic gymnastics gold since 2016 on Tuesday, while Paris organisers postponed the men’s triathlon by a day over pollution in the Seine just hours before it was due to start.

Lebanon braced on Monday for a possible large-scale counterstrike after Israel’s security cabinet authorised a military response to the weekend rocket attack from Lebanon that killed 12, all teenagers and children. Diplomats engaged in extensive last-minute efforts to avert a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah.