May 31, 2014 (Saturday)
Armed conflict and attacks
- War in North-West Pakistan:
- Taliban insurgents from Afghanistan attack a Pakistani border post in the Bajur tribal area, resulting in the deaths of 14 militants and one soldier. (Voice of America)
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, previously the only United States military prisoner held captive in Afghanistan, is released in exchange for five Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay. (Time)
- Turkish police fire tear gas at hundreds of protestors in Istanbul and Ankara as protestors mark the anniversary of the start of the ongoing protests. (Sky News Australia)
Arts and culture
- Psy's "Gangnam Style" becomes the first video to reach 2 billion views on YouTube. (Time)
Disasters and accidents
- The United States National Park Service advises that six climbers who went missing on Washington's Mount Rainier are not expected to be found alive. (Reuters)
- A Gulfstream IV jet crashes near the U.S. town of Bedford, Massachusetts, with all seven people aboard dying. Lewis Katz, the co-owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer was on board. (CNN) (Philly.com)
- Three spectators are killed in a crash at the Jim Clark Rally near Coldstream, Scotland. (BBC News)
International relations
- Chuck Hagel, the United States Secretary of Defense, accuses the People's Republic of China of "destablilizing" behaviour in the South China Sea. (Reuters)
Law and crime
- Slender Man stabbing:
- In Waukesha, Wisconsin, two 12 year-old girls stab another 12-year-old girl 19 times. (Chicago Tribune)
Politics and elections
- Peter Mutharika is sworn into office as the President of Malawi. (AP via Miami Herald)
Sport
- In association football, the Fiji national under-19 football team win the 2014 OFC U-20 Championship, thus qualifying for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup to be held in New Zealand. (OFC)
- In association football, Latvia win the 2014 Baltic Cup. (LFF)
- In boxing, Carl Froch knocks out George Groves in the eighth round to retain the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation super middleweight championships. (BBC Sport)