'At full speed': Home favourite Loïs Boisson vies for spot in French Open final

We look at an exclusive from The Guardian which relays harrowing testimony given to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. Asaad al-Nasasra is one of two survivors from a March 23 attack, when 15 of his first responder colleagues were slaughtered by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza. They had been sent to recover the bodies of two paramedics killed in an earlier attack when their ambulances were ambushed by the IDF. Nasasra detailed what happened that day, telling the PRCS that he heard Israeli troops shoot first responders while they were clinging to life. The bodies were later found in a mass grave, with injuries indicating some had died through blows to the back of the skull. Nasasra was detained and tortured by the IDF for 37 days afterwards – including solitary confinement, starving and being subjected to loud music for long periods of time.

This follows the shooting deaths of 27 Palestinians this week near food delivery sites, which has prompted a sharp rebuke from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The Telegraph reports that at the House of Commons on Wednesday he described Israel’s recent actions in Gaza as "appalling" and reiterated calls for a ceasefire. Starmer also said he would not rule out imposing sanctions on Israel. It follows a joint statement by the UK, France and Canada last month criticising Israel for preventing aid from entering Gaza.

Rarely are press updates to articles controversial, but one amendment made in The Washington Post has drawn the ire of social media users. The article reported on the attack on 27 Palestinians near a food delivery site in Gaza on Tuesday. The initial article attributed the killing of more than 30 people to Israeli forces, according to Middle East Eye. The article was amended to say that 31 people were killed according to Gaza's health ministry when Israeli forces opened fire. The vague phrasing, not directly blaming the attack on Israeli forces because of Israel's denial, has caused much uproar on social media. One Twitter user calls it "absolutely reprehensible journalism" and questions why the thousands of Palestinian eyewitnesses did not corroborate the attack. 

Next, The Times of London looks at how the Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel is setting up in Europe. The British daily recounts a recent raid on the southern French city of Le Val, not far from St Tropez, where a meth lab was dismantled inside an opulent villa. Five Mexican members of Sinaloa had arrived there, in total anonymity, then set up a lab with the intention of training locals to run it and take a cut of the profits. It's the first confirmed Sinaloa operation on French soil and raises the spectre of the cartel’s growing influence on Europe, this as demand for cocaine rises. Detectives believe that about 400 kilograms of meth amphetamine was produced in Le Val to be sold locally and smuggled as far as New Zealand, with profits valued at more than €11 million.

Turning to sports news, the French papers are ecstatic as home favourite Loïs Boisson continues her dream run at the French Open. "A dream run" is not even strong enough to describe the French player's incredible week at Roland-Garros. Boisson, ranked 361st in the world, shot out of obscurity to topple world number three Jessica Pegula and then world number six Mirra Andreeva. She'll play her semi-final against world number two Coco Gauff this Thursday for a spot in the women's final on Saturday. L'Equipe, the French sports paper, pays tribute to Boisson at "full speed", who is powering through and hoping to make her first final. In its edition, former world number one Mats Wilander writes: "Yes she can!"

Finally, a new study shows that smiling could be more efficient than Botox if you're looking to improve your physical appearance! The Times of London reports that a Dutch study followed 114 participants who underwent Botox and dermal filler treatments. The changes in their appearance were then judged by independent raters. The study's conclusion: Botox only offered small increases in how desirable people were seen in short-term relationships and none at all in long-term relationships. Their conclusion is that if you're taking Botox to seem more attractive, there is a far cheaper alternative: just smile!

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.