Plus, millions of British voters cast their ballots.

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Daily Briefing

Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello. The US and Iran are inching toward a short-term deal to end fighting, oil supplies are set to tighten further in the coming weeks, and UK voters cast their ballots 

Plus, inside Congo's deadly health misinformation crisis.

Today's Top News

 

People chant during a rally in Tehran, Iran, May 6, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Middle East

  • The United States and Iran are edging toward a limited, temporary agreement to halt their war, sources and officials said, with a draft framework that would stop the fighting but leave the most contentious issues unresolved.
  • With their location trackers shut off to avoid Iranian attacks, the United Arab Emirates and buyers have recently sailed several tankers loaded with crude through the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to move oil bottled up in the Gulf, according to industry sources and shipping data. Read our exclusive.
  • Israel said it had killed a commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force in an airstrike on Beirut a day earlier, the first Israeli attack on the Lebanese capital since a ceasefire agreed last month.

In other news

  • Millions of British voters cast their ballots today in local and regional elections that are expected to deal a huge blow to Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party and renew questions over his ability to govern.
  • The Trump administration blitz that flooded Minnesota with immigration agents also dramatically slowed other federal investigations and prosecutions into an array of serious crimes, a Reuters review of federal court records found.
  • US Secretary of State Marco Rubio came ‌to the Vatican for a potentially fraught encounter with Pope Leo as Trump has continued a series of disparaging attacks on the Catholic leader over the Iran war.
  • Countries worldwide scrambled to trace people who had left the cruise ship hit by ‌a hantavirus outbreak before it got marooned off the coast of Cape Verde, to prevent further spread of the disease.
  • Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silvia heads to the White House today for a high-stakes meeting with the US president. Reporter Lisandra Paraguassu tells the Reuters World News podcast that with an election looming, Lula needs to show voters he can go toe-to-toe with Trump.
 

Business & Markets

 
  • Oil supplies are set to tighten further in coming weeks even if the US and Iran agree on a peace deal to end their war because it will take weeks for oil shipments to resume from the Middle East Gulf and reach refiners worldwide - so oil companies will continue to deplete storage tanks to meet peak summer demand.
  • Japan faces no constraints on how often it can intervene in currency markets and is in daily contact with US authorities, its top currency diplomat said, reinforcing Tokyo's resolve to defend the embattled yen.
  • Anthropic said it reached a deal to tap the computing resources of Elon Musk's SpaceX, marking a détente with its one-time critic and a boost for both companies ‌in the high-stakes artificial intelligence race.
  • Arm Holdings tumbled on investor worries about the company's ability to secure sufficient supplies for its new AI chip to meet demand, overshadowing its strong forecast.
  • With UK 10-year debt yielding 5%, roughly the highest in over a decade, PM Keir Starmer may face brutal losses in local polls. He could then leave, or steer left. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss the impact on the country’s budget policy and markets.
 

Fake rumors, real killings: Inside Congo's deadly health misinformation crisis

 

Justine Tangakeya Basekauke, widow of murdered health worker Dr. John Tangakey. Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo. REUTERS/Reuters TV

In Tshopo, a northeastern Congolese province blanketed in rainforest, rumors rippled through villages late last year claiming a mysterious illness had caused men's genitals to atrophy.

Within days, testimonials proliferated on social media that amplified the imaginary threat, triggering a real-life panic that turned deadly before the government could react.

Angry mobs attacked and killed four health workers conducting vaccination research in an episode that took place in October, four officials and a survivor told Reuters - a deadly example of the rising danger posed by online health misinformation in Africa.

Read more
 

And Finally...

Players from Esporte Clube Originarios, a team composed entirely of Indigenous athletes, train in Marica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. REUTERS/Tita Barros

From a village on the coast of Rio de Janeiro state, Indigenous people have founded a professional soccer team made up solely of players from across Brazil, turning the state championship into a new front in their ‌struggle fo