World News Roundup: Niger junta supporters protest sanctions as region considers intervention; Canada's Trudeau, hit by separation, set to stay on and fight election and more

The appellants - backed by Netanyahu's own attorney-general - want that voided. Canada's Trudeau, hit by separation, set to stay on and fight election Justin Trudeau's surprise announcement that he and his wife were separating, just a week after a broad cabinet reshuffle, underscores the Canadian prime minister's focus and intent to lead the Liberal Party into a fourth election victory, despite sagging opinion polls, pollsters and insiders said.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Niger junta supporters protest sanctions as region considers intervention

Hundreds of supporters of Niger's military junta marched in the capital Niamey on Thursday to protest against West African sanctions, as the region's defence chiefs were due to wind up talks on a possible intervention to restore democracy. General Abdourahamane Tiani, the former head of Niger's presidential guard, confined President Mohamed Bazoum to his residence last Wednesday and declared himself head of state in the seventh coup in West and Central Africa since 2020.

Romania to clear 30 ships from Ukrainian river ports by Friday

Romania said on Thursday it will clear customs for up to 30 ships waiting to enter Romania from Ukrainian ports on the Danube River over the next two days, a sign that trade has not halted despite a Russian attack on Ukraine's main river port. Ukraine is one of the world's top grain exporters and Russia has attacked its agricultural and port infrastructure for more than two weeks after refusing to extend a year-old safe passage grain corridor brokered by the United Nations and Turkey.

Top Israeli court weighs in on Netanyahu's judicial overhaul

Israel's Supreme Court began hearing on Thursday the first in a series of appeals against a judicial overhaul being unfurled by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his religious-nationalist coalition, which has set off an unprecedented domestic crisis. A March amendment to a quasi-constitutional "basic law" limited conditions under which a prime minister can be deemed unfit, or incapacitated, and removed from office. The appellants - backed by Netanyahu's own attorney-general - want that voided.

Canada's Trudeau, hit by separation, set to stay on and fight election

Justin Trudeau's surprise announcement that he and his wife were separating, just a week after a broad cabinet reshuffle, underscores the Canadian prime minister's focus and intent to lead the Liberal Party into a fourth election victory, despite sagging opinion polls, pollsters and insiders said. On Wednesday, Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau unexpectedly announced their separation, likely marking the end of their 18-year-long high profile marriage. The separation is one of Trudeau's biggest personal crises, although insiders and political commentators said he wants to ride out the aftershocks.

Number of hungry in Sudan rises above 20 million

The estimated number of people facing acute food insecurity in Sudan has risen faster than expected to 20.3 million, or 42% of the population, as a conflict between rival military factions deepens a humanitarian crisis, a food security body said. The worst hit areas include the capital Khartoum, the western region of Darfur, and parts of Kordofan, all of which have seen fighting, attacks and looting since the war broke out in mid-April, according to the Integrated Food Security Classification (IPC), a partnership of U.N. agencies, NGOs and other groups.

Rising domestic violence is a hidden front in Ukraine's war

When the body of 34-year-old Liubov Borniakova was found in her home in the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine in January, it was marked with 75 bruises, according to the coroner's report. Her husband, Yakov Borniakov, had been laying low inside their apartment during the previous month, after deserting from the army, according to Borniakova's aunt and a neighbour. He got drunk and beat Borniakova repeatedly during the two weeks before her death, they told Reuters.

Thirteen hurt in South Korea stabbing incident near Seoul -police

Nine people have been stabbed and four others hurt by a car driven by the suspected attacker on Thursday in the South Korean commuter town of Seongnam near the capital Seoul, police said. One person has been arrested, police said in a statement.

China hints leaders started annual seaside vacation in flood-hit province

Chinese President Xi Jinping's chief of staff met with experts holidaying at Beidaihe on Thursday, a signal that typically means top leaders have started their vacation at the seaside resort, even as large areas of northern China remain flooded. The summer retreat comes as questions continue to swirl around the unexplained removal as foreign minister of Qin Gang, a former rising star under Xi's patronage, the abrupt replacement of the top brass at the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, and as the leadership struggles to find the right tools to stimulate the economy.

Trump to face charges of trying to overturn 2020 election defeat

Former U.S. President Donald Trump is due to appear in court on Thursday to face charges he led a wide-ranging conspiracy built on lies to overturn the 2020 presidential election, culminating in a violent attack on the seat of American democracy. Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, is scheduled to appear in a magistrate's courtroom at 4 p.m. ET (2000 GMT) in Washington, D.C., half a mile (1 km) from the U.S. Capitol, the building his supporters stormed on Jan. 6, 2021, to try to stop Congress from certifying his defeat.

'I'm your warrior': How Trump used hush-money charges to rev up race for White House

On March 30, when Donald Trump was indicted over a hush-money payment to a porn star, he already owned the narrative. He had been preparing for this moment. Four weeks earlier, anticipating the indictment was near, the former president dictated notes to aides for a pugnacious speech - one that would ultimately help reignite his political fortunes, pull away from Republican rival Ron DeSantis and redraw the 2024 race for the White House.