Tennis star Osaka lights Olympic flame as Games begin
The Tokyo 2020 Games are officially under way as Naomi Osaka lights the Olympic flame in a poignant opening ceremony.

Daily Covid cases down for third day in UK
New infections are down but it is too soon to say if cases have peaked, say experts.

Covid: Food exemption scheme delayed until Monday
Iceland warns the move will not solve the issue of staff shortages in supermarkets themselves.

Cold case cracked with smallest ever amount of DNA
Just 15 cells' worth of DNA was used to track down the man suspected of killing a US girl in 1989.

Met Office storm warning for campsites and caravans
Thunderstorms and 55mph gusts of wind could disrupt the plans of holidaymakers, the Met Office says.

Concern mounts for missing 11-year-old schoolgirl from Bolton
The parents of Fatuma Kadir, who travelled from Manchester to London by train, say they are in "shock".

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Stonehenge may be next UK site to lose world heritage status
Britain is eroding global reputation for conserving its historic assets, culture bodies are warning

• Why could Stonehenge be stripped of world heritage site status?

The UK is eroding its global reputation for conserving its "unparalleled" historic assets, culture bodies have warned, with Stonehenge expected to be next in line to lose its coveted World Heritage status after Liverpool. Related: Unesco strips Liverpool of its world heritage status Continue reading...

'We need a lot of help': Germans sift through debris after devastating floods
Trucks, diggers and volunteers try to clear mud and ruined belongings from wrecked homes and businessesA brown line one and a half metres high on the kitchen wall marks where the waters reached when Christian Ulrich's house was inundated. The electrician stands amid the mud-splattered walls and his voice breaks as he recalls how he had barely enough time after the warning came to reach the cellar to get food and water and send his mother up the stairs. He had just managed to let in the neighbours who had banged on the door for help, when there was an "almighty crash - like an explosion" as a huge wave of water rolled in from the back and front of the house, so strong it pushed out the front door and many of the windows. Continue reading...

Naomi Osaka provides spark at subdued opening of Tokyo Olympics
Ceremony began as the most downbeat in Olympic history but finished in spectacular fashion

• Tokyo Olympics - live updates

Amid the darkness of the Tokyo skyline, a moment of hope and raging illumination. After nearly four hours of an opening ceremony that veered from the sombre to the spectacular, the Olympic flame was passed to the face of these Games, Naomi Osaka. As the steps of the Mount Fuji stage opened up before her, Japan's globally recognised tennis star jogged towards the summit, nodded, and then set the cauldron - and perhaps these troubled Tokyo 2020 Olympics - alight.It was the culmination of a ceremony that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president, Thomas Bach, promised would offer a "moment of hope" in a Covid-riven world. Continue reading...

Australia's most populous state declares 'national emergency' over Covid outbreak
New South Wales announces 136 new local Delta cases with Sydney under the strictest lockdown measures it has experiencedAustralia's most populous state has declared a "national emergency" as it struggles to contain a record-breaking surge of the Delta variant of Covid-19 amid a lockdown affecting half the country.The state of New South Wales announced 136 new locally-acquired cases of Covid-19 on Friday, with continued community transmission among essential workers, including in supermarkets and pharmacies. Continue reading...

Ghana: anti-gay bill proposing 10-year prison sentences sparks outrage
Bill could mean 10 years in prison for LGBTQ+ people and those who support their rightsDraft anti-gay legislation submitted to Ghana's parliament could propose up to 10 years in jail for LGBTQ+ people as well as groups and individuals who advocate for their rights, express sympathy or offer social or medical support, in one of the most draconian and sweeping anti-gay laws proposed around the world.Support for intersex people would also be criminalised and the government could direct intersex people to receive "gender realignment" surgery, said the draft legislation. Continue reading...

Athens appoints chief heat officer to combat climate crisis
Greek capital is first in Europe to create role, which will involve finding new ways to cool the cityAthens has appointed a chief heat officer to protect people from soaring temperatures and try to find ways to adapt the city to the heatwaves and extreme weather that are striking the capital more frequently as the result of the climate emergency.The appointment, made on Friday by the mayor of Athens, Kostas Bakoyannis, is the first in Europe and believed to be only the second in the world, after Miami-Dade county in Florida appointed a chief heat officer earlier this year. Continue reading...

He dismissed the importance of getting vaccinated to his listeners. His family says he regrets that now that he's hospitalized in 'very serious condition' with Covid.
For months, conservative Nashville, Tennessee-based radio host Phil Valentine has repeatedly made posts on multiple social media platforms telling his fans that if they weren't at risk for Covid-19, they shouldn't get the vaccine.

Unvaccinated nursing instructor with Covid: 'Never in a million years do you think it's going to happen to you'
Christy Henry had played it safe during the pandemic.

Missouri health care CEO says people are dying unnecessarily
Health experts blame the recent surges in Covid-19 cases on the low rate of vaccinations, and now the accelerating Delta variant is threatening to increase hospitalizations and deaths as well, an expert said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis blames this for surge in cases
As coronavirus cases are on the rise in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis vows he won't impose a mask mandate. CNN's Leyla Santiago reports.

Alabama governor says 'start blaming the unvaccinated folks'
Alabama Republican Gov. Kay Ivey on Thursday called out "the unvaccinated folks" for the rise in Covid-19 cases in her state, a remarkable plea at a time when many GOP leaders are refusing to urge people to get vaccinated even as Covid-19 cases surge in many parts of the country.

DOD has had about 2,000 breakthrough Covid cases
The Department of Defense has experienced about 2,000 breakthrough Covid-19 cases among its more than 2 million fully vaccinated personnel, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Cesar Santiago-Santini told CNN in a statement, but it's unclear how many are a result of the Delta variant.

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