World News Roundup: Benjamin Netanyahu, a hawk in the eye of the storm; Swedish court fines Greta Thunberg for disobeying police order and more

Last week's attacks mostly struck the sea ports of Odesa but Monday's pre-dawn strikes hit infrastructure along the Danube, an export route whose importance has grown since the demise of the deal allowing Ukrainian grain transit via the Black Sea. Ukraine reports more advances in south, battles rage in east The Ukrainian military has retaken over 12 square km (4.6 square miles) of territory in southern Ukraine in the past week in their counteroffensive against Russian forces, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Benjamin Netanyahu, a hawk in the eye of the storm

Benjamin Netanyahu began his best-selling autobiography with the story of a daring Special Forces raid he took part in to free Israeli passengers from a hijacked airliner in 1972, an event that helped shape his hawkish image during more than three decades in politics. It is one of the ironies surrounding Israel's longest-serving prime minister that within weeks of beginning his record sixth term in office, one of his signature policies - an overhaul of the judiciary - caused such tensions in the army that his defence chief warned national security was at risk.

Swedish court fines Greta Thunberg for disobeying police order

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was found guilty of disobeying a police order to leave a climate protest in the southern Swedish city of Malmo last month and was sentenced to pay a fine, Malmo District Court said on Monday. Thunberg, 20, who became the face of young climate activists world-wide after staging weekly protests in front of the Swedish parliament, admitted that she had disobeyed the police order but pleaded not guilty and said that she was acting out of necessity.

Some strikes at UK airport Gatwick cancelled, suspended - union

Some of the strikes planned by baggage handlers and other workers at Britain's no.2 airport Gatwick in the peak summer travel period have been suspended or cancelled, the Unite trade union said on Monday. The union said earlier this month that airlines including easyJet, TUI and British Airways could face cancellations and delays after two sets of four-day strikes by 950 workers were announced for late July and early August.

UN Command talking to North Korea about US soldier Travis King

The United Nations Command and North Korea have begun discussing the case of Travis King, the U.S. soldier who crossed into the North last week, the deputy commander of the U.S.-led command that oversees the Korean War truce said on Monday. King, a U.S. Army private serving in South Korea, sprinted into North Korea on July 18 while on a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the inter-Korean border, landing Washington in a fresh diplomatic quandary with the nuclear-armed North.

Two protesters burn Koran in front of Iraqi embassy in Denmark

Two protesters set fire to a copy of the Koran, Islam's holy book, in front of the Iraqi embassy in the Danish capital on Monday, risking a further deterioration of relations between the two countries. Protests have raged across Iran and Iraq after Denmark and Sweden allowed the burning of the Koran under rules protecting free speech. Protesters in Iraq set alight the Swedish embassy in Baghdad on Thursday.

Russia accuses Ukraine of 'terrorism' after drone strike near Moscow army HQ

Russia accused Kyiv of "terrorism" saying that two Ukrainian drones had damaged buildings in Moscow, including one close to the Defence Ministry's headquarters on Monday, a day after Ukraine promised payback for Russian strikes on Odesa. Nobody was reported hurt in the attack, but one of its targets - close to the Moscow building where the Russian military holds briefings on what it calls its "special military operation" - struck a symbolic blow and underscored the reach of such drones.

Tourists flown home as wildfires rage on Greek islands

Tour operators flew home nearly 1,500 holidaymakers at the start of a mass evacuation from wildfires raging on the Greek island of Rhodes on Monday and officials said the threat of further fires was high in almost every region of the country.

Fires burning since Wednesday on Rhodes forced the evacuation of 19,000 people over the weekend as an inferno reached coastal resorts on the island's southeast. A wildfire also forced evacuations from the island of Corfu.

Israel parliament starts vote on limiting supreme court power

Israel's parliament on Monday began final voting on contested changes sought by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the judiciary as last-gasp talks continued to ease one of the country's worst political crises set off by his plans. President Isaac Herzog who called the standoff "a national emergency" was still trying to forge a compromise on the government's judicial plans which have sparked unprecedented nationwide protests, a person familiar with the matter said.

Russia attacks Ukraine's vital Danube grain export route

Russia destroyed Ukrainian grain warehouses on the Danube River in a drone attack on Monday, targeting a vital export route for Kyiv in an expanding air campaign that Moscow began last week after pulling out of the Black Sea grain deal. Last week's attacks mostly struck the sea ports of Odesa but Monday's pre-dawn strikes hit infrastructure along the Danube, an export route whose importance has grown since the demise of the deal allowing Ukrainian grain transit via the Black Sea.

Ukraine reports more advances in south, battles rage in east

The Ukrainian military has retaken over 12 square km (4.6 square miles) of territory in southern Ukraine in the past week in their counteroffensive against Russian forces, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday. Maliar said the advances brought the territory recaptured since the counteroffensive began in early June to more than 192 square km in the southern sector.