The time is 21:00 (UTC) on May 31th, 2006, and this is Audio Wikinews News Briefs.

Iraq
The Iraqi government is to launch a formal investigation into claims that United States Marines murdered civilians in the Iraqi town of Haditha in November 2005.

Kashmir
Terrorists in Kashmir threw a grenade at a tourist bus in the heart of Srinagar, killing one person and injuring 21 others. Eyewitnesses say that the vehicle, in which were travelling tourists from West Bengal was attacked near the Dal Gate.

United Nations
The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization, both part of the United Nations, have stated that some countries, particularly China, Indonesia and some countries in Africa are "under-reporting" the number of human cases of the deadly H5N1 Avian Flu (Bird Flu) virus, but also said that the countries are not hiding them "deliberately."

China
The Yangtze River, the third longest river in the world, is polluted. It supplies water to 186 cities. The river takes 40% of China’s waste, 80% of which is untreated. It is the only source of drinking water to Shanghai, a city with 20 million people.

Netherlands
Mark Rutte has been elected leader of the Dutch People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). In a close internal election, the junior minister for Education beat the minister for Immigration and Integration Rita Verdonk and backbencher Jelleke Veenendaal.

Romania
The third edition of Bucharest's gay pride festival, GayFest, opened yesterday, May 30. The festival, which will last until June 4, consists of a series of LGBT cultural events, including film screenings, theatre and photographic exhibitions, as well as public debates about LGBT issues, and a gay pride parade on June 3, expected to attract hundreds of people.

Germany
Up to 7,000 people took to the streets in Gießen today, protesting the planned introduction of tuition fees at Hessian universities.

Sweden
A raid involving 50 members of the Swedish National Criminal Police has taken the servers of The Pirate Bay into custody. The search warrant was given on grounds of alleged copyright violation and assisting copyright violation. This move comes as a bit of a surprise, as the legality of the site has been under public debate for over three years, with the operators frequently issuing public press releases.

France
Legislation pending in the French Parliament would require that music purchased online for use on digital music players be compatible across all players. It has become popularly known in France as the "iPod bill," after the popular music player made by Apple Computer, and could pit France against Apple and other distributors of online music.

New Zealand
A man in Rotorua today was shot after being involved in a crash outside the Rotorua International Stadium.

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Wikinews:Briefs/May 31, 2006