Four Russian soccer fans to be expelled from France

LILLE (Reuters) - Four Russian soccer fans will be deported from France after being detained in the northern France city of Lille ahead of the Euro 2016 match between Russia and Slovakia, local authorities said on Wednesday. "Two of the Russians were arrested yesterday evening during a fight in Lille and two after being found drunk in a car with weapons," a spokesperson at the Lille prefecture said. The weapons were wooden sticks, a police source said. Russia's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday summoned the French ambassador in Moscow over the detention of Russian soccer fans. Three more soccer fans were arrested on Wednesday morning and were being held for questioning, the police source said, without saying what their nationality was. The arrests came as thousands of fans arrived in Lille for Wednesday's match and for the England versus Wales game due to take place on Thursday in nearby Lens amid a heavy police presence and a ban on alcohol in attempts to prevent a repeat of violence that has marred the tournament. (Reporting by Pierre Savary in Lille and Emmanuel Jarry in Paris; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Andrew Callus)