Pair arrested after boys abandoned by road in Portugal

The mother and stepfather of two young French boys found alone and in tears by the side of a road in southern Portugal have been arrested.

The children - both under five - were found by a driver near the town of Alcacer do Sal on Tuesday, police said.

They were carrying backpacks with food and water but no identity documents.

The boys' father had reported them missing from their home in Colmar in eastern France on 11 May and France had issued a pan-European request for help.

Police in Portugal and France have opened inquiries and said they had not reached any conclusions at this stage.

Local media reports said the couple were arrested after their car was spotted outside a café in the city of Fatima, about 180km (112 miles) north of Alcacer do Sal.

Portugal's National Republican Guard said its officers arrested a 41-year-old woman and man aged 55. They have not formally identified the arrested pair.

They said the couple were being investigated for the crimes of domestic violence, exposure to danger, and abandonment.

The driver who found the boys said he fed them before alerting the police.