Top world headlines: Lance Armstrong given a lifeline and Olympic French stars dies in freak accident

We take a look at the top headlines in the world today, particularly those which captured Charmain Naidoo's interest.

1. A teenager has driven a stake of fear into Australian residents. The Islamic State recruit, unmasked as a Melbourne teenager, 18-year-old Jake Bilardi, has made taunts on Twitter threatening terrorist attacks would make the 9/11 look like “child’s play”. The boy, dubbed the “white jihadi” after featuring in IS propaganda videos, was previously believed to be British, but was yesterday identified as an Australian. Bilardi, a gifted student turned high school dropout was reportedly lured by the death cult while searching for answers after losing his mother.

2. The Guardian reports that a group of French sports stars taking part in a reality television show were among 10 people killed yesterday when their helicopters collided in mid-air while filming in north-western Argentina. Champion sailor Florence Arthaud, Olympic gold medalist swimmer Camille Muffat and Olympic boxer Alexis Vastine were among those killed when two helicopters filming the survival series “Dropped” crashed into each other in the rugged mountains of La Rioja province. In what is being described as a horrific accident, it has been reported that the two helicopters collided as they were filming. There were no survivors. The cause of the crash was unknown.

3. The fur flew this week at the world’s best known Dog Show, Crufts. Mirror Online reports that the handler of the Scottish Terrier who won best in show at Crufts caused a furore by lifting her dog by the tail. The Kennel Club said it had told Rebecca Cross it was unacceptable to pick up her dog, named Knopa, in that way, 'but despite repeated requests not to do so, she went ahead'. Apparently Mrs Cross apologised. "I didn't do it on purpose, it was just habit. It's just one of those things. It happened and I tried to really think about it and not do it, but it's habit." An angry petition complaining of her treatment of her dog treatment now has 50,000 signatures.

4. The Telegraph reports that Lance Armstrong will be given an opportunity to plead for a reduction in his lifetime ban. The super cyclist was stripped by USADA of all seven of his Tour de France titles in 2012 but he has consistently argued that he was treated far more harshly than his peers, most of whom were on the same cocktail of drugs that he was. Now Brian Cookson, president of the UCI, says he has been asked to broker a meeting between the disgraced American and the United States Anti-Doping Agency in the wake of cycling's independent report into doping. The Telegraph says: “On a day of high drama, which saw former presidents Hein Verbruggen and Pat McQuaid both come out swinging in the wake of the report’s findings that they were complicit in encouraging a culture of doping, Armstrong's name was mostly noticeable by its absence. But behind the scenes it now appears that the wheels have been set in motion for the Texan to argue his case for a reduction in his ban.”

5. The HuffPost on US vice president going ballistic in the Senate: “Vice President Joe Biden is furious. Biden, who also serves as president of the Senate, yesterday blasted Senate Republicans in a long, angry statement for their letter to Iran’s leaders which he described as "beneath the dignity of an institution I revere." Forty-seven Republicans on Sunday wrote directly to Tehran to suggest that any nuclear deal with the Obama administration would not be constitutionally binding because a future president or Congress could take steps to revoke it. Biden called the move an unprecedented affront "designed to undercut a sitting president."

6. Some good news for menopausal women from the Mail Online: Women taking HRT could cut their risk of heart disease and an early death – as long as they start in their 50s, according to researchers. Data from 40,000 patients found that those taking the drugs from this age were less likely to die prematurely from any cause and the threat of a heart attack was halved. There was, however, a slightly raised risk of blood clots.When evidence from those across a wider age range was examined, it showed oral HRT did not protect against heart disease and may increase stroke risk. But the beneficial effects became apparent in a group of 9,000 women who started HRT at or not long after the menopause and before 60. They took it for three to ten years.

7. Another story from Mail Online: How overpraising your children could turn them into insufferable brats with an overinflated sense of self. And they could grow into narcissistic and arrogant adults according to the findings of a Dutch psychological study. It found that instead of telling children they are better than others, parents should tell them they are as good as anyone else. The research, which tracked participants for 18 months, suggests there is a fine line between self-esteem and narcissism. Children who are repeatedly told they are special go on to have an inflated view of themselves, whereas those who are simply told they are loved tend to be confident and well-rounded.