World News Roundup: US Supreme Court weighs Idaho's strict abortion ban in medical emergencies; Gaza protests grow at US colleges, thousands demonstrate in Brooklyn and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Better US-China ties but still deep disagreements as Blinken starts visit

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Shanghai on Wednesday with U.S.-China ties on a steadier footing, but with a daunting array of unresolved issues threatening the stability of relations between the global rivals. Blinken will meet with business leaders before heading to Beijing for talks on Friday with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and a likely meeting with President Xi Jinping.

Analysis-China spy charges up scrutiny of Germany's far-right ahead of EU polls

Leaked discussions about a mass deportation plan. A trial for using Nazi language. And now China spying allegations and reports about covert payments from a Kremlin ally. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is facing unprecedented scrutiny this year and fighting to put out multiple fires that are denting its support ahead of European and local elections that threaten to upend German politics.

US Supreme Court weighs Idaho's strict abortion ban in medical emergencies

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday wades back into the battle over abortion access in arguments pitting Idaho's strict Republican-backed abortion ban against a federal law that ensures that patients can receive emergency care. The justices are set to hear arguments in an appeal by Idaho officials after a lower court ruled that the 1986 U.S. law at issue, the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), takes precedence over the state's near-total ban. President Joe Biden's administration has urged the justices to uphold that ruling.

Gaza protests grow at US colleges, thousands demonstrate in Brooklyn

Protests against Israel filled streets in Brooklyn and escalated at universities across the United States, some of which included Jewish Passover Seders, as demonstrators demanded an end to civilian casualties in Gaza. The growing protests follow mass arrests of demonstrators at some East Coast universities in recent days and show a deepening dissatisfaction in the United States, historically Israel's most important ally, with the course of the war with Hamas.

Gaza could surpass famine thresholds in six weeks, WFP official says

The Gaza Strip could surpass famine thresholds of food insecurity, malnutrition and mortality in six weeks, an official from the World Food Programme said on Wednesday. "We are getting closer by the day to a famine situation," said Gian Caro Cirri, Geneva director of the World Food Programme (WFP).

Russia detains ally of Defence Minister Shoigu for alleged corruption

A Russian court on Wednesday ordered one of Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu's deputies to be kept in custody on suspicion of taking bribes, the highest-profile corruption case since President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in 2022.

Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov was detained on Tuesday at work by the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, for accepting large bribes.

N.Ireland's Donaldson appears in court over rape, other sexual offence charges

The former leader of Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Jeffrey Donaldson, faces 11 historical sex offence charges, including one count of rape, prosecutors told a Northern Irish court on Wednesday. Donaldson, 61, stepped down suddenly as head of the British region's largest unionist party last month after the DUP said he had been charged with allegations of a historical nature. He is one of Northern Ireland's best-known politicians.

Trump 2.0: how U.S. allies are working to iron out the bugs

Germany is waging a charm offensive inside the Republican Party. Japan is lining up its own Trump whisperer. Mexican government officials are talking to Camp Trump. And Australia is busy making laws to help Trump-proof its U.S. defense ties. Everywhere, U.S. allies are taking steps to defend or advance their interests in the event former President Donald Trump returns to power in November elections, an even chance based on recent opinion polls in swing states.

After battle with Republicans, Biden to sign Ukraine aid package

President Joe Biden will sign a bill into law on Wednesday that provides billions of dollars of new aid to Ukraine for its war with Russia, a bipartisan victory for the president as he seeks re-election and a boost to allies who have looked to Washington to support Kiev. Biden, a Democrat who is expected to face Republican former President Donald Trump, a Ukraine aid skeptic, in the November election, has pressed lawmakers for six months to approve more funding for Ukraine, which has been fighting a full-scale Russian invasion for more than two years.

Some Palestinians forced to flee homes as Israel pounds northern Gaza

Some Palestinian civilians were fleeing their homes in northern Gaza on Wednesday just weeks after returning because of an Israeli bombardment which they said was as intense as those at the start of the war. Much of the shelling was focused for a second day on Beit Lahiya on the northern edge of Gaza, where the Israeli military gave evacuation orders to four neighbourhoods on Tuesday, warning they were in a "dangerous combat zone".

(With inputs from agencies.)