News Daily: Imran Khan 'ahead' in Pakistan election, and London flats fire

By Justin Parkinson BBC News

Hello. Here's your morning briefing:

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Imran Khan 'ahead in Pakistan election'

Could Imran Khan, one of cricket's greatest ever players, be on course to become prime minister of Pakistan? Early unofficial results in the country's election suggest his PTI party is in the lead - but also that it will have to form a coalition to secure a parliamentary majority.

Voting on Wednesday saw violence, with many people killed. With 42% of polling stations counted (at the time of writing), the PTI is leading in 113 of 272 contested National Assembly constituencies, it is reported.

However, Imran Khan's main opponent, disgraced former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has alleged vote-rigging and manipulation. Here's a guide to who's who in this election, and why it matters. And we have a profile of Imran Khan, from his "playboy" days, to winning cricket's World Cup, to becoming a major political force.

Trump: We'll work with EU to cut tariffs

Donald Trump has said the US and the EU will work more closely together in future to ensure freer trade, following a "good, constructive" meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. They would look to achieve zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers, and zero subsidies on non-auto goods, he said, adding that US soy bean exports to the EU would increase. The announcement comes amid fears of a trade war and EU suspicion over Mr Trump's apparent fondness for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Here's an explanation of the US president's view on tariffs and protectionism.

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West London fire: 100 firefighters tackling blaze at block of flats

Around 50 people have been removed from a block of flats in West Hampstead, west London, where a fire broke out early in the morning. Some 100 firefighters are at the scene, where there are no reported injuries at the moment. We'll have all the latest developments from the fire, in Inglewood Road.

'I was given HIV at eight - and couldn't say'

By Jon Kelly, BBC Stories

Matt Merry can't recall the exact words his mother used to tell him he was HIV-positive. He just remembers not knowing how to react, not at first, not in front of his mum. She had sat him down at a table in the back room of their home in Rugby to break the news. Matt was 12 years old.

He'd had the virus for four years, his mum explained. An injection he'd received to treat haemophilia, the bleeding disorder he was affected by, had been contaminated with it. This was 1986, at the height of the Aids epidemic, and an HIV diagnosis was perceived as a death sentence.

Read the full article

What the papers say

The UK heatwave provokes a strong response in the press. The Daily Telegraph focuses on a report by MPs saying that the UK is "at the mercy" of such weather events and more needs to be done to prepare for rising temperatures. The Daily Mirror goes on the warning that today could see the country's hottest recorded day ever. Meanwhile, the Sun shows a picture of a rat looking upwards, under the headline "Gnaws" - a play on the film Jaws - reporting that the heat could bring a "plague" of the rodents. And the Sun looks ahead to what it calls "Furnace Friday".