Israel prefers Assad survive the bloody conflict - report A weakened, but intact Assad regime would be preferable for Syria and the Middle East, the intelligence source said.

Magnitude 5.9 quake jolts northeast Japan The epicenter was off the coast of Fukushima prefecture, more than 200 km northeast of Tokyo, where buildings also shook.

55 dead, 14 missing after rainstorms in southern China The Ministry of Civil Affairs website says at least nine provinces have had storms and some flooding and landslides since May 14.

Obama trims request for Afghan operations by 10% The U.S. chief executive has said he plans to draw down troops in Afghanistan after 2014 but has not specified by how much.