June 1, 2012 (Friday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Syrian uprising: The United Nations Human Rights Council votes to condemn the massacre carried out by Syrian forces in the town of Houla on May 25, despite Russia, China and Cuba voting against the resolution. (The Guardian)
- The New York Times reports that U.S. President Barack Obama accelerated the pace of the American cyberwarfare campaign after the 2010 Stuxnet. (The Guardian) (The New York Times)
- An armed Palestinian infiltrator and an Israeli soldier are killed during an exchange of fire along the Gaza border, and at least three militants are injured during an Israeli air strike on Gaza. (BBC)
Arts and culture
Business and economics
- World stock markets[which?] hit their lowest level in 2012. (The Guardian)
Health
- Gonorrhoea soars in England. (BBC)
International relations
- China arrests a security ministry official on suspicion of spying for the United States; the official is reported to have been blackmailed by the CIA. (BBC)
- The Japanese yen and the Chinese yuan begin direct trading.(Yomiuri)[permanent dead link]
Law and crime
- The Venezuelan government outlaws the commercial sale of guns and ammunition, the latest in a series of initiatives to improve security and cut crime. (BBC)
- Samoa announces the pardon of 35 prisoners to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its independence from New Zealand. (BBC)
- The Food and Drug Administration, a U.S. government agency, goes to court to secure supplies of a drug used in lethal injections, which have dwindled since an importation ban. (BBC)
Politics and elections
- Counting of votes in the Irish referendum on the European Fiscal Compact gets underway, with early tallies indicating the Compact has been approved. (Reuters via Yahoo! News Australia) (Al Jazeera) (The Guardian)
Sports
- In baseball, Johan Santana pitches a no-hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals, the first in New York Mets history. (ESPN)