Five children have died in a devastating fire that tore through a house in northern France.
The children, who were siblings, were aged between two and ten, according to local officials in the town of Saint-Quentin.
And in a second blaze in a northern suburb of Paris, three were killed and 13 were hurt after reports petrol bombs were thrown in what officials say was a 'criminal act'.
Officials said the blaze was out of control by the time firefighters arrived. They were unable to save the children
By the time firefighters arrived at the house in Saint Quentin, about 80 miles north-east of Paris, the blaze was out of control and the building was unsafe to enter.
Their father, who was looking after the children for the first time since splitting from his wife, according to French media, desperately tried to get to his children but was beaten back by flames and jumped for his life from a first-floor window.
He escaped with minor injuries.
The children could not be rescued by fire crews and their bodies were discovered after the flames were put out. It is believed they died from asphyxiation.
Local official Jean-Jacques Boyer said the severity of the fire 'severely hampered the firefighters' work'.
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