In consecutive days this week, China brokered a deal between rival Palestinian factions and hosted Ukraine's foreign minister at a moment when pressure is mounting on the country to negotiate an end to the grinding war there.

While it's unclear if the agreement between Hamas and Fatah will succeed where others have failed and there is little concrete progress towards peace in Ukraine, China emerged a winner, further cementing its role as a diplomatic force on the global stage, not just an economic powerhouse.

Venezuela's government and opposition closed the official presidential campaign season Thursday with demonstrations that drew thousands of people to the streets of the capital.

The events three days before the highly anticipated election on Sunday encapsulated the massive disparities between the top contenders, including their resources.

Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama have endorsed Kamala Harris in her White House bid, giving the vice president the expected but still crucial backing of the nation's two most popular Democrats.

The endorsement, announced Friday morning in a video showing Harris accepting a joint phone call from the former first couple, comes as Harris continues to build momentum as the party's likely nominee after President Joe Biden's decision to end his reelection bid and endorse his second-in-command against Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.

The Paris Olympics were getting off to a rougher than hoped-for start Friday, with suspected acts of sabotage targeting France's flagship high-speed rail network and cloudy skies with light drizzle over the French capital ahead of its sprawling, ambitious opening ceremony.

On a day of utmost importance for France and its capital, with dozens of heads of state and government in town for the Olympic opening and a global audience of over 1 billion expected to tune in, authorities were scrambling to deal with widespread rail disruptions caused by what they described as coordinated overnight sabotage of high-speed train lines.

An airport located at the Swiss-French border was evacuated on Friday for security reasons, hours after arson attacks disrupted the French rail network ahead of the Olympics opening ceremony.

"For safety reasons, the terminal had to be evacuated and is currently closed," the Basel-Mulhouse EuroAirport said on its website.

The French national rail company SNCF said Friday that high-speed lines were hit by several "malicious acts" that heavily disrupted traffic on the day of the high-risk Olympics opening ceremony.

The arson attacks on France's high-speed rail network were coordinated acts of "sabotage", a source close to the investigation told AFP on Friday.

Russian drones attacked the southern Ukrainian port city of Izmail for a second straight night damaging infrastructure, Kyiv said Thursday, claiming several Russian attack drones entered Romanian airspace.

Moscow has repeatedly targeted ports in the southern Odesa region since it exited an accord last year brokered by the United Nations and Turkey allowing Ukraine to export grain via the Black Sea.

Iran on Thursday denounced the U.S. government and Congress for welcoming the Israeli prime minister amid the deadly war in Gaza that is raging into its 10th month.

"Palestinian children are slaughtered every day by the Tel Aviv butcher, and in the face of all these crimes, the American government and Congress are welcoming this executioner with applause," said Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani in a post on X.

Emmanuel Macron has pledged to make France shine during the Olympics. Weaker than ever at home after recent elections, the French president hopes the Paris Games also will help his own star glitter again.

The Olympics are the best way to convince the world to "choose France," Macron said this week, trotting out a motto geared toward boosting foreign investment in the country. "It will promote our landscapes, our facilities, our savoir-faire as well, our gastronomy."

President Joe Biden delivered a solemn Oval Office address Wednesday that laid out in the clearest terms yet why he abandoned his reelection campaign.

He wanted to send an unmistakable warning about Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump while anointing Vice President Kamala Harris as his natural successor, without invoking an overtly political tone that would have been out of step in the official setting of the White House. He was determined to show that he would not act like a lame-duck president, outlining an ambitious agenda that underscored his resolve to continue building on his legacy.