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Relatives of Afghan victims mourn outside a hospital after a blast in Kabul, Afghanistan May 31, 2017. REUTERS/Omar Sobhani
Afghanistan A powerful bomb hidden in a sewage tanker exploded in the center of Kabul, Afghanistan, killing at least 80 people, wounding hundreds and damaging embassy buildings, police said. It exploded close to the fortified entrance to the German embassy, killing a security guard and wounding some staff, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Twitter. Reuters TV: Kabul blast
Taliban denies responsibility
Brexit Prime Minister Theresa May could lose control of parliament in Britain's June 8 election, according to a projection by polling company YouGov, raising the prospect of political deadlock just as formal Brexit talks begin.
Washington U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is expected to press for greater cooperation to contain North Korea's nuclear and missile threat at a regional security forum in Singapore later this week, where for years Washington has instead sought to spotlight China's expansion in the strategic South China Sea. The shift in focus worries Southeast Asian allies that Washington might allow China freer rein in the region. The U.S. military fired an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands toward the waters just south of Alaska. It then successfully fired a missile to intercept it from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a major milestone for a program meant to defend against a mounting North Korean nuclear threat. South Korea defense ministry 'intentionally dropped' THAAD units in report: Blue House A group that published hacking tools that security experts believe were stolen from the U.S. National Security Agency said it plans to sell a new batch of stolen code in July to customers willing to pay more than $22,000 for it.
‘Who rules the world?’ 
Sweden's Prime Minister Stefan Lofven (L-R), with his counterparts Lars Lokke Rasmussen of Denmark, Erna Solberg of Norway, Juha Sipila of Finland and Bjarni Benediktsson of Iceland hold a soccer ball during their meeting in Bergen, Norway. May 29, 2017. NTB Scanpix/ Marit Hommedal via REUTERS
Arab Gulf Just 10 days after U.S. President Donald Trump called on Muslim countries to stand united against Iran, a public feud between Qatar and some of its Gulf Arab neighbors is jolting his attempt to tip the regional balance of power against Tehran. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are incensed by Qatar's conciliatory line on Iran, their regional arch rival, and its support for Islamist groups, in particular the Muslim Brotherhood, which they regard as a dangerous political enemy.
Syria A Russian warship and submarine have fired four cruise missiles from the Mediterranean at Islamic State targets near the Syrian city of Palmyra, the Defense Ministry said.
Business A man has been arrested and two are missing in China after conducting an investigation into a Chinese company making Ivanka Trump-branded shoes, China Labor Watch, a New York-based advocacy group said. Oil prices fell by 1 percent today as rising Libyan production fueled concerns that OPEC-led output cuts are being undermined by several countries that are excluded from the deal. Exxon Mobil Corp has stepped up efforts to persuade investors to vote against climate-related proposals at Wednesday's annual meeting with a campaign of calling, writing and lobbying shareholders in person. The world's largest publicly traded oil company opposes a proposal requiring it to report on the risks to its business from new technologies and global climate change policies, insisting it already provides the information. Goldman Sachs confirmed the purchase of $2.8 billion of bonds for pennies on the dollar in Venezuela, but clarified that it never transacted directly with the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The country's opposition dismissed the statement as an attempt to "put lipstick on this pig." The deal, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, made Goldman complicit in alleged human rights abuses under the government, they said.
Israel As the 50th anniversary of the outbreak of the Six-Day War nears on June 5, recently unearthed documents detailing the post-war legal and diplomatic debate have a familiar ring, and underline how little progress has been made towards resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. | 
