Morning briefing: 10 stories from around the world

The latest transit of Mercury, left, in front of the Sun is seen from St Petersburg, Russia.

1 Just passing by

This composite image, above, of observations by Nasa and the ESA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory shows the path of Mercury during its 2006 transit. Photos / AP

For the first time in 10 years, Mercury passed directly between the Earth and sun, resembling a black dot against the vast, glowing face of our star. Many stargazers turned to the Internet as Nasa provided close-to-real-time images of the 7½-hour trek, courtesy of the Solar Dynamics Observatory. The cosmic show was visible from many parts of the world but Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea missed out. A transit of Mercury occurs only about 13 times a century. The next transit of Mercury won't occur until 2019.

2 Duterte in charge

Nearly complete unofficial vote counting shows tough-talking Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has won the presidential election in the Philippines amid a turnout of 41 million out of 55 million eligible voters. With 37 million votes counted, Duterte had secured 14.4 million votes. His nearest rival, former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, had 8.6 million votes.

3 'Nothing to say' on 'enabler' claim

Hillary Clinton is refusing to respond to Donald Trump's comments that she was an "enabler" of Bill Clinton's marital infidelities during his political career. Clinton told reporters following an event in Virginia that she has "nothing to say" about the Republican front-runner "and how he's running his campaign". Clinton said that she's answering Trump "on what I think voters care about," including on differences "between our records, our experience, what we want to do for our country".

4 It was somewhere about here

A hearse carrying the body of a woman has been found in Munich, a day after its driver forgot where he had parked it. A passing motorist spotted the hearse with white curtains sitting near the southern German city's Isar River, police said. The vehicle was not damaged, and the body was inside. The 24-year-old driver employed by a Polish funeral home had decided on Monday to take a break in Munich while on his journey from Italy to Poland. When he returned to the spot he thought he had left the vehicle, it was not to be found.

5 Chilcot report finally on way

The long-awaited report into Britain's involvement in the Iraq war will be published on July 6. Security checks on the 2.6 million word report have been completed without the need for any redactions. The date of publication was agreed by the Inquiry's head, Sir John Chilcot and Prime Minister David Cameron.

6 Austria loses leader

Austria's Chancellor abruptly resigned, a high-profile victim of Europe's growing shift to the right, which threatens to push into obscurity some parties that have dominated post-World War II politics. Werner Faymann cited lack of backing from his fellow Social Democrats as his reason for stepping down both as the nation's and his party's leader. Vice-Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner, of coalition partner People's Party, was to take over until the Government nominates a new candidate for presidential approval.

7 Lottery winner

Someone who spent US$6 on lottery tickets at a New Jersey store last week holds the lone winning ticket for the US$429.6 million Powerball jackpot. Carole Hedinger, the New Jersey Lottery's executive director, said the ticket was bought last Wednesday from a 7-Eleven in Trenton.

8 Clash over transgender rights

A potentially epic clash over transgender rights took shape when the US Justice Department sued North Carolina over the state's new bathroom law. In unusually forceful language, US Attorney-General Loretta Lynch said North Carolina's law requiring transgender people to use the public restroom corresponding to the gender on their birth certificate amounts to "state-sponsored discrimination" and is aimed at "a problem that doesn't exist".

9 Knocked out by a fish

Wildlife officials say a Florida man was knocked unconscious by a sturgeon that leapt into his boat on the Suwannee River during a fishing tournament. Ronald Dick, 62, and his son were travelling about 50 km/h when the 1.5m fish jumped into the boat. Dick's injuries were not considered life-threatening and that he was taken to a hospital for treatment.

10 Getting to the root of the carrot

Scientists have got to the root of the carrot, genetically speaking. Researchers said they have sequenced the genome of the carrot, an increasingly important root crop worldwide, identifying genes responsible for traits including the vegetable's abundance of vitamin A, an important nutrient for vision. The genome may point to ways to improve carrots through breeding.

- agencies