moving closer to russia, which happened after coups in neighbouring burkina faso and mali. later, leaders from the 15 countries that make up the economic community of west african states, and the eight leaders from the west african economic and monetary union, will meet to discuss their response. brandon kendhammer is politics professor at ohio university and expert on politics in west africa. hejoins us now. thank you and welcome to the programme. what is your take on what we are witnessing in niger right now?— right now? good morning. i think what _ right now? good morning. i think what we _ right now? good morning. i think what we are _ right now? good morning. i l think what we are witnessing right now? good morning. i. think what we are witnessing is likely the consolidation of any military regime. enough time has passed now that we have a general sense of who was in charge or who would like to be in charge and while we have seen a fair bit of international response at this point, a lot of statements in this meeting this morning, it seems unlikely at this point that there is going to be immediate action to restore civilian government to niger soon. ., . y civilian government to niger soon. ._, ., ., , soon. to any organisation is meeting _ soon. to any organisation is meeting on _ soon. to any organisation is meeting on this, _ soon. to any organisation is meeting on this, and - soon. to any organisation is i meeting on this, and obviously there was 15 days notice for civilian rule to be stalled, did they have any teeth to make change? i certainly think they have some mechanisms in place and some ability to influence things. 3 and some ability to influence thins. �* ., ., ., things. a lot of it what will come down _ things. a lot of it what will come down to _ things. a lot of it what will come down to is _ things. a lot of it what will come down to is how - things. a lot of it what will| come down to is how much support there is from the key actors in niger who may be swayed one way or the other. with all the military line up behind this newjointer very quickly and within a 1.5 days. there are some opportunities here and i think there is a fair degree of moral persuasion from ecowas in particular that may be able to push for some sort of change but what we will likely see in the short term is that they will have to accept is there has been a military coup. is there has been a military cou. ~ is there has been a military cou n . ~ ., is there has been a military cou. . ., ., ~' ., coup. when we are talking about the military _ coup. when we are talking about the military actors _ coup. when we are talking about the military actors in _ coup. when we are talking about the military actors in niger- the military actors in niger right now, how many of foreign? we don't have any evidence that any other foreign born of the most important things to understand about what is going on is that it seems to be driven by internal dynamics, it has to do with the head of the presidential guards, general abdourahmane tchiani and his relationship with mohamed bazoum and ongoing problems with the military issues as they are partners with french partners. they are partners with french artners. ~ ., they are partners with french artners. ~ . ,, they are partners with french artners. ~ ., ., partners. what you have offer those partners? _ partners. what you have offer those partners? a— partners. what you have offer those partners? a us - partners. what you have offer those partners? a us drone l partners. what you have offer i those partners? a us drone base locally and _ those partners? a us drone base locally and a _ those partners? a us drone base locally and a lot _ those partners? a us drone base locally and a lot of— those partners? a us drone base locally and a lot of invested - locally and a lot of invested resources locally in the last decade, decade and a half, and niger as the largest in the oda and considerable effort to make niger and to support niger as a democratic exemplar in a region that has become increasingly unstable and the risk is that this decline as quickly as a result of the coup.- this decline as quickly as a result of the coup. and the alignment _ result of the coup. and the alignment with _ result of the coup. and the alignment with russia? - result of the coup. and the - alignment with russia? because thatis alignment with russia? because that is a concern right now? that is a concern in some circles and there is some refinement narrative compelling or a way to drive interest in this. we have heard nothing from the emerging junta in niger one way or another so i think it would be premature to jump think it would be premature to jump to the conclusion that naturally this is something that the kremlin will be able to take advantage of. we simply do not know what their orientation towards this is one way or another and we do not know if they are willing to give up the considerable french and us assistance that the government in niger has dependent on 415—20 years. to dependent on 415-20 years. to aet dependent on 415—20 years. to get the sense that the public of niger are behind this move? what we know is that in a lot of west african countries including niger there is considerable support for the idea of military intervention when governments are corrupt or ineffective or mechanic maintain security. we see that but it does not mean that people reject democracy or that they would prefer military regime over all other options. it isjust that regime over all other options. it is just that they are very sensitive to the idea that the civilian regime has done very poorly on important metrics for people, such as security, economic development, so there may be an opening here where people are willing to see what happens. it does not mean that they will support military rule forever or they will support the junta forever or they will support thejunta going forward. the junta going forward. professor, thejunta going forward. professor, thank the junta going forward. professor, thank you very thejunta going forward. professor, thank you very much. kenya says it's ready to lead a multinationalforce in haiti, where clashes between the police and criminal gangs have displaced tens of thousands of people. the country's foreign minister says nairobi would deploy 1,000 police officers in the caribbean nation. the mission is subject to a mandate from the un security council and formal authorisation from the kenyan authorities. earlier this month, the un secretary—general, antonio guterres, called for the creation of a multinational force for haiti. speaking before kenya's announcement, the us secretary of state, antony blinken, voiced concerns about the situation. we have very deep concern for the situation there, particularly with regard to violence and the activities of the gangs. we are, as i think you know, the largest humanitarian donor to haiti but we are also very focused on working together with partners to try to help the haitians restore security, restore stability. that really is the necessary foundation. the developments happen as a christian aid group says an american nurse and her child have been kidnapped in the country. it happened on thursday near the capital, port—au—prince, after the us advised all its citizens to leave the country because of the worsening security situation. gangs control large parts of haiti's capital port—au—prince and kidnappings for ransom are common. earlier, my colleague in washington, helena humphrey, spoke to harold isaac, a journalist based near port—au—prince. she asked what we know so far about how any force might work very little at this stage. i mean, for many people here, it came as a bit of a surprise, especially after over nine months of waiting for a word or an actual commitment with regards to foreign police or military personnel here in haiti. it's really interesting you say that it came as something of a surprise because as we've been speaking about, the un secretary—general, antonio guterres, was in the country and he said it's not time to forget haiti. is that the sense that people there are feeling, that the country has been forgotten? it has been a prevailing feeling in the country for a little while, although in the last week or so, there seems to have been a lot of movement including the order of evacuation from us authorities and also now is information about troops, eventually, police officers eventually coming to haiti, so everyone is taking this for the most part with a bit of a grain of salt, a bit of cautious cautiousness with regards to what it will entail in the short—term. i want to ask you about how you think a multinational force will be accepted in haiti because, as you know, a great deal of mistrust grew with un peacekeepers after the cholera outbreak in 2010. how do you anticipate these forces being met in haiti? well, effectively, the question of foreign military or police intervention in haiti has been a polarising one over the years, especially after the minister, which is the un peacekeeping mission from 2004 to 2017, which didn't leave haiti with necessarily good memories, especially the cholera epidemic and sex abuse scandals, so it is early to know how the population will react to this news and also what will be the terms of this intervention. this coming at a time when we've been hearing about an american nurse and child that have been kidnapped in the country. just talk to us about how dangerous it is there right 110w. well, this is where it is a bit nuanced and complicated because for people here, men on the street, here in haiti, not much has changed in the last year or so really. the main highlight has been the end of april when a civilian vigilante movement started which shifted, pushed the fear to change camp and led gangs to be a little bit more fearful but that said, it remains a very volatile situation, many parts of the capital remain dangerous and it's unclear where we go from here. and along with the united states ordering the departure of non—emergency personnel, we are hearing that some non—haitian residents have been gathering at the embassy grounds, seemingly looking for respite from gang violence. is that what you have been hearing as well? yes, as we've seen on the ground this week, dozens of folks had gathered in front of the us embassy seeking shelter seemingly from gang violence, which has been prevailing in the vicinity of the us representation. that being said, these people eventually got evacuated by police as they were growing in number and constituted some security situation for us with representation but ivps, as they are called, internally displaced people, from gang violence, are numerous around town. many neighbourhoods have to be vacated by civilians running away from gang violence. harold isaacs. russian president vladimir putin has said he does not reject the idea of peace talks on ukraine. speaking after meeting african leaders in st petersburg, he said an african or chinese peace initiative could serve as a basis for any talks. but mr putin also said it was hard to implement a ceasefire when the ukrainian army was on the offensive. it comes as the mayor of moscow has accused ukraine of a drone attack on the russian capital. two office blocks were damaged but there were no injuries. meanwhile, ukraine says a russian missile attack on the north—eastern city of sumy has killed at least one civilian and wounded five. officials said the missile struck an educational centre. the uk prime minister, rishi sunak, has ordered the department for transport to review existing so—called low—traffic neighbourhood schemes — which seek to reduce the numbers of cars using streets in some residential areas. mr sunak told the sunday telegraph newspaper, he wanted to show drivers that he was "on their side." critics, including some conservatives mps, argue they reduce the freedom of motorists. let's take a look at some of the other stories in the news here in the uk. a man's died in hospital after a crash involving an ambulance and a scooter in south yorkshire. police say the ambulance was responding to an emergency call in barnsley on friday night when the collision happened. plans for the hs2 rail line in england have been deemed "unachievable" by the government's own infrastructure watchdog. construction of the first two phases of the high speed rail line have been given a red rating, with major issues relating to the schedule and budget which the infrastructure and projects authority say don't appear to be managable or resolvable. england cricketer stuart broad will take to the field later after announcing his plans to retire from the sport. considered one of england's best bowlers, the 37—year—old announced yesterday that he plans to finish his career at the end of the fifth and final ashes test at the oval. it's day 11 of the women's world cup, with co—hosts new zealand back in action in the second round of group games. competition starts in less than half an hour, with south korea facing morocco, both looking for a first victory. norway play the philippines in auckland whilst new zealand are looking to book their place in the last sixteen. but they'll have to beat group a leaders, switzerland. then it's germany against colombia, who both started this tournament with wins. live now to bella cartman, host of the white shorts podcast which looks at new zealand women's football. she's in wellington. hello and welcome to the programme. i think we should start with the new zealand game. what are your thoughts about that? taking on switzerland?— about that? taking on switzerland? �*, ., ., , switzerland? it's going to be unbelievable, _ switzerland? it's going to be unbelievable, there - switzerland? it's going to be unbelievable, there is - switzerland? it's going to be unbelievable, there is a - switzerland? it's going to be unbelievable, there is a lot l unbelievable, there is a lot riding on this game, and so i think last time when we went against norway a lot riding on those game in the girls outperform themselves and got the victory and i think we will see that again tonight. in see that again tonight. in terms of _ see that again tonight. in terms of the team and the make—up of the team, are looking strong? make-up of the team, are looking strong?— make-up of the team, are looking strong? yes, the last two lineuos _ looking strong? yes, the last two lineups have _ looking strong? yes, the last two lineups have been - two lineups have been relatively the same, a lot of debutantes in the squad but a lot of veterans with a lot of experience in the international stage, a really good mixture of those two coming together and performing really well in the field, ithink performing really well in the field, i think tonight we will see a pretty similar lineup and hope another strong performance from the girls. hope another strong performance from the girls-— from the girls. have they recovered _ from the girls. have they recovered their _ from the girls. have theyj recovered their standing, from the girls. have they - recovered their standing, they slipped to their lowest ever point of 26, didn't they? yes, no, unfortunately _ point of 26, didn't they? yes, no, unfortunately we - point of 26, didn't they? yes, no, unfortunately we are - point of 26, didn't they? yes, no, unfortunately we are still| no, unfortunately we are still at 26 but i believe switzerland is only at 20, or 19, not too much of a gap and especially with the rankings at the moment i don't think they can expect too much in terms of the performance of the teams on the fields, we have seen some big upsets so far with the tournament, i don't ride too much on those fifa rankings. what has this world cup done for new zealand and how much support is therefore the women's game?- support is therefore the women's game? it's been unbelievable _ women's game? it's been unbelievable we - women's game? it's been unbelievable we had - women's game? it's been unbelievable we had a - women's game? it's been unbelievable we had a lot| women's game? it's been i unbelievable we had a lot of pride coming into the tournament it would completely change how football is viewed in new zealand, and i think the great example of how much it has changed as we had an all blacks came over the weekend and none of the coverage was really about the all blacks came it was all focused on the upcoming game tonight and i think thatjust proves the ship to this tournament has had on the impact it has had on new zealand and how we view football and how we participate in it, as a rugby loving nation to see the all blacks get barely any airtime is under be —— unbelievable. barely any airtime is under be -- unbelievable.— barely any airtime is under be -- unbelievable. you said there was hope _ -- unbelievable. you said there was hope things _ -- unbelievable. you said there was hope things could - -- unbelievable. you said there was hope things could change, | was hope things could change, what needed to change, what kind of topics to discuss on your pod casts? it’s kind of topics to discuss on your pod casts?— kind of topics to discuss on your pod casts? it's 'ust how women-s * your pod casts? it's 'ust how women's football _ your pod casts? it's 'ust how women's football is h your pod casts? it'sjust howl women's football is viewed in conjunction with men's football, when people talk about socket is always assumed it as men's football but i think we are seeing now people refer to the world cup, what to think about the world cup and the fact people are saying the world cup and referring to the women's world cup is huge, it is immense, it means the dynamic is changing from seeing women's as the secondary to the main event, we see them both as equal now and i think that is how we need the sport to progress forward and a lot of people are saying in new zealand are saying, quality is about seeing both is equally and rather than the men's first or women's second, it is about both being the world cup or socket is a game, there is no precipice of women's or men's before that.— before that. before we get to the games — before that. before we get to the games that _ before that. before we get to the games that are _ before that. before we get to the games that are coming i before that. before we get to i the games that are coming up, career and morocco about to kick off, it was a small point, though not mentioning the gender of the world cup. how is pay in the game looking. —— career. pay in the game looking. -- career. , ., _ pay in the game looking. -- career. ., , career. pay is obviously a big toic career. pay is obviously a big to - ic of career. pay is obviously a big topic of conversation - career. pay is obviously a big topic of conversation when i career. pay is obviously a big i topic of conversation when you talk about women's sports. i think what we are seeing now in the reaction that this world cup is having is that the women's game just does draw the fans, does draw the people, it does draw the resources and, the commercial money that needs to go into it, to get these women the pay that they deserve. but often times the conversation when we talk about equity is often times about resources and pay, and unfortunately it gets sideload and to pay. a lot of the players are just —— players are just asking for equal resources and pay has a big part in the game but what this world cup is proving is that women do draw the crowds and the fans and it is definitely worth investing in women's football in women's sport as a whole because you will get your return on your investment.— will get your return on your investment. ~ ., ., ., ., investment. we have got korea, morocco, norway _ investment. we have got korea, morocco, norway the _ morocco, norway the philippines, switzerland new zealand, germany and colombia, of the three other games are you most excited to watch? to be you most excited to watch? trr be honest the korea — morocco game, both coming off their first loss, it is a pretty big game to play for, a draw will not do too well for either of them, with how the group is shaping up. they are both going to be playing for a lot, germany one of my favourites to win, that's going to be a great game to see them, they have been playing some slick football so far, i think korea — morocco we will see a lot of emotion and heart playing out on that field.— on that field. your pod cast is available _ on that field. your pod cast is available online? _ on that field. your pod cast is available online? yes, - on that field. your pod cast is available online? yes, it - on that field. your pod cast is available online? yes, it is i available online? yes, it is available _ available online? yes, it is available on _ available online? yes, it is available on apple - available online? yes, it is available on apple pod i available online? yes, it is| available on apple pod cast available online? yes, it is i available on apple pod cast and we are on instagram if you want to give it a well —— if you want to give it a spin. the white shorts _ want to give it a spin. the white shorts podcast.. i want to give it a spin. the white shorts podcast.. thank you very much. as russian forces moved into ukraine last year, thousands of people had to flee their homes — with many finding refuge in the uk. 0ne family who came to live in northern scotland are moving back to their home country after nine long months. and they're being helped by those who opened their home to them. daniel bennett reports. packing for a massive trek, it is not a holiday but a journey back into a war zone some ukrainians who have made their homes in scotland. they are been driven there by friends chris harrison and danny ralph who took on refugees last year. we thought we have got a big house, we could do something to help folks that i just like house, we could do something to help folks that ijust like us. you do things with friends, we did not start out as friends we started out as normal people and introduced each other, now we are really good friends, at least i think they are, they might say something different. he has beenjoined by fellow driver whose idea was to take the family home. it driver whose idea was to take the family home.— the family home. it is quite shocking — the family home. it is quite shocking to _ the family home. it is quite shocking to hear— the family home. it is quite shocking to hear some i the family home. it is quite shocking to hear some of i the family home. it is quite i shocking to hear some of the stories they come out with and what they had to live through, it is an honour to help with them do what we could and six weeks ago danny was having a coffee morning at the local han —— all, and i texted danny and i said you fancy a road trip. danny lynch stop glycolipids and said ok.— danny lynch stop glycolipids and said ok. the “ourney will take them h and said ok. the journey will take them hundreds - and said ok. the journey will take them hundreds of i and said ok. the journey will take them hundreds of milesj and said ok. the journey will. take them hundreds of miles to dover through belgium and onto ukraine, they are adding a detourfor a family ukraine, they are adding a detour for a family reunion ukraine, they are adding a detourfor a family reunion in luxembourg. it detour for a family reunion in luxembourg.— luxembourg. it is very difficult _ luxembourg. it is very difficult for _ luxembourg. it is very difficult for mothers i luxembourg. it is very i difficult for mothers who had luxembourg. it is very - difficult for mothers who had a full family in ukraine, before the war, but they are nay raising children without a father who stayed in ukraine, it is really important reason why some people going home. the children are very homesick. they want to study in ukraine, they want to work in future in ukraine. �* ., ukraine. and with that the u-rou ukraine. and with that the grouo had _ ukraine. and with that the group had set _ ukraine. and with that the group had set off- ukraine. and with that the group had set off on i ukraine. and with that the group had set off on their| ukraine. and with that the i group had set off on their two and a half thousand mile trek. speaking gaelic. mi} and a half thousand mile trek. speaking gaelic.— and a half thousand mile trek. speaking gaelic. 700 mile drive south and the _ speaking gaelic. 700 mile drive south and the group _ speaking gaelic. 700 mile drive south and the group were i speaking gaelic. 700 mile drive south and the group were readyj south and the group were ready to get the ferry over to france. they passed through belgium and into luxembourg, for this. belgium and into luxembourg, forthis. it belgium and into luxembourg, for this. it is long hours but in the end, worth it. after crossing poland, a reminder on the border with ukraine about difficult getting in can be. shy, difficult getting in can be. lot of vehicles being donated to the army, a lot ordinary cars. it looks like what some of these are. here we go. finally we have reached kyiv. after a document check they are back on the road. after five days two and a half thousand miles, and nine long months, home. protests have been taking place across israel for the thirtieth week in a row, against the government's planned judicial overhaul. it has been the first saturday of mass demonstrations since the first bill in the overhaul was passed by the israeli parliament earlier this week. the new law limits the supreme court's ability to nullify legislation it deems unreasonable. on friday, israeli media reported military intelligence officials had warned prime minister benjamin netanyahu that israel's enemies viewed the current crisis as a historic weak point that could be exploited. dangerous heat that began in the us southwest is now being felt across central and eastern regions, now more than 20 states across the us are under heat advisories. record—breaking temperatures are being recorded in arizona, illinois, and texas — heat indexes are expected to hover around 100 to 110 degrees fahrenheit, over 43 degrees celsius. and before we go, that extreme heat in the us is affecting just about everything — including the animals. these pictures come to us from california — a grizzly bear caught on camera, cooling off in a private home's pool in burbank. it was captured during record—breaking heatwave temperatures on friday and police released the footage. locals had spotted the bear before itjumped in to cool off. the owner says it was in there for about five minutes, before climbing up a tree and falling asleep. for a siesta. wise bear. stay with us here on bbc news. more coming up shortly. hello. for the third weekend in a row, low pressure is in charge of our weather. it has already brought us some rain during saturday. much of that rain came in the form of some sharp showers. some sunny spells in between. for sunday, we will see more general rain spreading from the south—west as we go through the day. 0n the earlier satellite picture, you can see the swirl of cloud. that's the area of low pressure that brought the showers on saturday. then behind me, this shield of cloud rolling in from the atlantic — already bringing some rain into the south—west of england through the first part of sunday morning. further north and east, sunny spells, scattered heavy showers. through the day, our band of rain pushes northwards and eastwards, getting into parts of northern ireland, wales, the midlands, down into the south—east of england by sunday afternoon. and with that, quite a strong wind at times as well. it will also turn really quite misty and murky for some coasts and hills in the west. temperature—wise, i think the highest values will be in eastern england, up to around 23 degrees. so, for the cricket at the 0val, i think there is the increasing chance of rain as we go through the day. some disruption to the day, certainly through the latter part of the afternoon, is quite likely. as we head through sunday evening, our band of rain continues to make further progress northwards and eastwards, certainly getting up into southern and some central parts of scotland. a lot of cloud further south and west. a bit misty and murky in places. and very, very warm and quite muggy in the south — 16 or 17 degrees. we head on into monday — our first band of rain pushes a little bit further northwards across scotland. could well see some further very wet weather moving across the channel islands and fringing into some southern counties of england. elsewhere, quite a lot of cloud. some showers at times. temperatures between 17 and 22 degrees. as we head deeper into the week, this area of low pressure is going to push away eastwards. it may be that another one pushes in from the west around the middle part of the week. the general pattern, though, through the week ahead is bringing ourair in from the north. that is going to make it feel really rather cool at times. temperatures as we move into the start of august generally below the average for the time of year. there will continue to be some heavy showers around at times — some drier interludes. this is bbc news. the headlines: leaders from across west africa are set to meet for an emergency summit following the coup in niger. soldiers announced the military takeover on wednesday, aiming to remove president mohamed bazoum. the eu, the us, france and other nations say they will not recognise the coup's leaders. kenya says it's ready to lead a multinationalforce in haiti, where clashes between the police and criminal gangs have displaced tens of thousands of people. the country's foreign minister says nairobi would deploy 1,000 police officers. the mission is subject to a mandate from the un security council. russian president putin says he doesn't reject the idea of peace talks on ukraine. he said an african or chinese peace initiative could serve as a basis for any talks. but he also said it was hard to implement a ceasefire when the ukrainian army was on the offensive. now on bbc news, click. this week, we are going atomic at the european 0rganization