Portal:Current events/2017 August 1

• War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
  • An explosion kills at least 29 people and injures dozens more at a Shia mosque in Herat, Afghanistan. (BBC)

• Angkor Wat
  • A 2 meter (6.5 feet) tall 12th century sandstone statue of a human figure is unearthed by archaeologists during an excavation of a Khmer Empire-era hospital built during the reign of King Jayavarman VII at Cambodia's Angkor Wat temple complex in Siem Reap Province. (BBC)

• Epidemiology of HIV/AIDS
  • According to the United Nations, the Philippines has the largest increase in HIV/AIDS in the Asia Pacific region with about a 140% increase in cases from 2010 until 2016 possibly causing a 'national emergency.' (ABC.net.au) (Human Rights Watch)

• GTA gang
  • Three so-called GTA gang members are shot dead and four others are wounded, including two guards, at a courthouse in Moscow, Russia, after they attempted to escape. (The Independent)

• 2017 New Zealand general election
  • Jacinda Ardern is elected the new leader of the Labour Party, after Andrew Little resigns on the back of poor opinion poll performance ahead of the 23 September election. (Stuff)
• Crisis in Venezuela
  • Venezuelan opposition leaders Leopoldo López and Mayor of Caracas Antonio Ledezma are seized at their homes overnight by the Bolivarian Intelligence Service (SEBIN) and taken to Ramo Verde Prison. They had been arrested previously by the Venezuelan government, but were under house arrest at the time of being seized. (BBC)
• Political appointments by Donald Trump
  • The United States Senate, in a 92–5 vote, confirms Christopher A. Wray as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (Reuters)

• 2017–18 Pro14
  • In rugby union, Celtic Rugby Limited, organiser of the competition formerly known as Pro12, officially announces the addition of two former South African Super Rugby teams, the Cheetahs and Southern Kings, to the now-renamed Pro14 effective with the upcoming 2017–18 season. (ESPN UK)