Record-breaking rainfall that pounded cities east of Tokyo overnight flooded roads and dozens of homes, stranded thousands of people, caused power outages and left at least four people dead and one missing.

The Japan Meteorological Agency downgraded its most severe warning for heavy rain in more than a dozen municipalities in Chiba prefecture as rain subsided Friday morning but forecast more rain later in the day.

Firefighters across France and in central England struggled against multiple fires Friday as a new wave of record-breaking heat baked a swath of Europe, their task further complicated by exceptionally parched landscapes.

With France experiencing its driest year ever, a new fire raced through woodlands overnight in the Landes region on the southwest coast. The blaze forced more than 500 people to evacuate their homes in the town of Luglon as hundreds of firefighters deployed to the area, the regional administration said Friday.

A British company said Thursday it has been hired to salvage a grounded Russian shadow fleet tanker off Oman's coast and stop an oil spill that is threatening wildlife as it reaches the country's shoreline following its dramatic spread in recent weeks.

Satellite images have shown that oil from the tanker Caroline Bezengi has exponentially spread over hundreds of square kilometers during stormy weather, endangering a marine protected area. The region's "Khareef" monsoon season peaks in July and August.

Firefighters were tackling multiple fires in central England on Thursday after the U.K. recorded its hottest day of the year as an intense stretch of hot weather continued to grip Europe.

The wildfires across the West Midlands, which saw several houses burned to the ground, have been "one of the most significant" incidents the region's fire service has ever dealt with, chief fire officer Simon Tuhill said.

Crew members of a Yemeni commercial ship who survived a deadly attack by Houthi rebels earlier this week said a second missile struck the vessel just as rescue efforts from the initial strike were underway, causing even more chaos and casualties.

In all, three ballistic missiles fired by the Iran-backed Houthis struck the ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, just off Yemen's coast, as it was coming into port, killing six people and injuring at least nine others, according to Yemeni authorities.

The heads of six Arab football federations expressed their "full support" and "confidence" in Gianni Infantino on Thursday as the embattled FIFA president fights to keep his job after his failed World Cup private investment plan.

The backing came from 2030 World Cup co-host Morocco, Qatar, Egypt, Mauritania, Lebanon and Sudan, with four of the signatories being FIFA council members.

Sister Mayela wears her black veil and habit as she walks to work near where another Catholic nun was violently attacked in Jerusalem's Old City — but she's now accompanied by a Jewish volunteer for protection.

Many Christians in Israel, who make up less than 2% of the country's population, are worried visible signs of their faith will draw harassment, which has increased as multiple conflicts grip the region.

Daniel Arcila scored twice, including the go-ahead goal in the 83rd minute, and Club León advanced to the Leagues Cup knockout stage with a 3-2 win over Inter Miami, which saw star Lionel Messi return following the death of his father.

Messi started the second half and received a loud ovation from fans at Miami's Nu Stadium. It was his first match since his father, Jorge, died Saturday at 68. Messi shared a tribute to his father on social media earlier Wednesday, saying he wasn't sure about his playing future.

Ukrainian drones struck a major refinery deep inside Russia, military officials said Thursday, the fourth in three days in Kyiv's monthslong campaign to choke Moscow's vital oil sector.

Russia is one of the world's biggest energy producers, with oil providing an economic mainstay as its army tries to push deeper into Ukraine in a slow and costly advance more than four years after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion.

A cloud of dust billows behind Maarten Janse's tractor as he spreads a mixture of compost, straw and manure over a field to nourish the parched soil.

Janse's farm on the fertile land of the Netherlands' southwestern Zeeland Province is drying out despite his efforts to make it more drought resistant as accelerated human-caused global warming and a supersized El Nino batter fields across Europe.