Paris Olympics open with rain on the Seine

Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor

Welcome to the Weekend Briefing. It's a good time to breathe, relax and take a calm look at the whirlwind week that was. You also should listen to our World News podcast on how Reuters reporters were able to buy everything they needed to make fentanyl powder.

Olympics begin with rain, Seine and train pain

Paris 2024 Olympics opening ceremony. François-Xavier Marit/Pool via REUTERS

Vandals in training: The gold medal for sabotaging a national rail network went to unknown parties who damaged signal substations and cables along lines connecting Paris with Lille, Bordeaux and Strasbourg. Points were removed after an attack on the Marseille line was foiled. There were 45,000 police and thousands of soldiers on hand for the opening ceremony, featuring a barge fleet carrying athletes down the Seine, and heavy rain drenched more than 300,000 spectators. Céline Dion returned to the stage with Édith Piaf's classic "Hymne à l'amour." See our live-coverage page and keep up with our easy-to-read schedule and list of who's winning which medals.
Not sporting: A coach and analyst on the Canadian women's soccer team were booted for using a drone to spy on the New Zealand team during a training session. An Australian swimming coach took heat for talking up a South Korean rival. The announcer during the opening ceremony said South Korea's athletes were North Koreans. And more than 155 people in France are under close surveillance during the games, including some who have never faced criminal charges.

Netanyahu meets the presidential candidates

Two visits: Benjamin Netanyahu traditionally has been more aligned with the Republicans, but the Israeli prime minister made room for Donald Trump as well as Kamala Harris given polling that shows a tight race between them. Trump called for a quick end to the war with Hamas and said Israel needed to manage its public relations better. Harris expressed concern about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza while saying Israel has a right to defend itself after the Oct. 7 attacks. Israeli officials criticized her for saying the war must end.
Two friends: Barack and Michelle Obama endorsed Harris five days after President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid in the face of opposition from his own party. The endorsement could boost support for Harris' campaign.

Oregon wildfire explodes to half the size of Rhode Island

No chance of rain: The Durkee fire has scorched 600 square miles. While no rain is forecast there, it is falling across the border in Alberta, where crews are fighting a fire that has destroyed half the structures in the tourist town of Jasper. In California, a man was arrested on suspicion of starting a fire that forced thousands to flee their homes.
Much chance of rain: Typhoon Gaemi pummeled towns in the Fujian province along China's coast after killing dozens of people as it swept through Taiwan and worsened rains in the Philippines. And the U.N. secretary general urged nations to address the urgency of the extreme-heat epidemic after the world recorded its hottest day on record.

Why 'green' jet fuel is failing to set the world on fire

An ever-green problem: Sustainable aviation fuel accounts for 0.2% of the jet-fuel market. Airlines say they want it, but producers say they need to pay more for it. Another topic at the Farnborough Airshow this past week: Sliding airline profits. Delta Air Lines flight disruptions have hit its premium-brand image, Southwest Airlines is ending open seating, and families of people who died in two 737 MAX crashes say a judge should reject a "sweetheart" plea deal between Boeing and the Justice Dept. Defense firms meanwhile say countries still want weapons and have the budget to buy them.
Hitting the fan: A manufacturing flaw led to a GE Vernova turbine blade failure at the Vineyard Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts, causing sharp debris to wash up on Nantucket island beaches. The project is shut down for now. Speaking of delays: General Motors put on indefinite hold a vehicle to be made without a steering wheel.

Before I forget…

- Alleged Mexican drug kingpin Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada pleaded not guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges a day after he and a son of his former partner Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán were arrested.
- Nearly a third of Ukrainians would accept territorial concessions to Russia for a quick end to the war, a poll shows. That's a more than three-fold increase from last year's results.
- Investment bankers are changing how they ask to be paid to make sure they make a big haul even when acquisition deals don't go through.
- An Australian judge's dismissal of a lawsuit claiming that Bayer's Roundup weed killer causes cancer will reverberate in U.S. courts.
Mallorcans are living in caravans as wealthy outsiders drive up the price of real estate on their island paradise. Mass tourism is having a similar effect in other places, from Madeira to Martha's Vineyard to Santorini.

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