Afghan Taliban attack Lake Qargha hotel near Kabul
Taliban militants have attacked a hotel outside Kabul, triggering a deadly gun battle with Afghan security forces and a hostage crisis.
Officials say insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns attacked the Spozhmai Hotel in the Lake Qargha area.
At least two people were killed. Hostages were seized, including women and children, but 18 were later freed.
The Taliban claimed the attack in the area favoured by Kabul residents.
The gunmen launched the attack on the hotel late on Thursday, the officials say.
"Police forces have besieged the hotel where people gathered for a picnic or wedding party," Kabul deputy police chief Daoud Amin told the AFP news agency. "We will be very careful so that not to harm to civilians," he added.
Some guests reportedly jumped out of hotel windows to flee from the attackers.
The US-led coalition is providing support to the Afghan security forces, who are trying to flush out the insurgents from the hotel.
Reuters news agency quotes the Taliban as saying they attacked the hotel because wealthy Afghans and foreigners used it for "wild parties".
Violence has recently increased across the country, with at least three US soldiers and about 20 Afghans killed in a series of attacks over the past seven days.
The attacks come as Nato prepares to hand responsibility to Afghan forces when the alliance's combat troops leave in 2014.
Dr. Dre, Eve Sued over Faith Evans Collabo ‘Love is Blind’
Dr. Dre and Eve have been hit with a lawsuit over royalties from their Faith Evans collaboration, “Love Is Blind.”
Music producer Big Hutch claims he co-wrote and produced the single in 1997 for Eve, who was then signed to Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment. But when Eve finally recorded the track two years later for her album “Let There Be Eve… Ruff Ryders’ First Lady,” he was never compensated or rewarded due to lack of evidence he had anything to do with the tune.
Big Hutch, real name Gregory Hutchinson, he is now suing to reclaim his share of royalties.
“I’m not trying to take away from what Eve has done, but I was a key in helping Eve create a hit record,” he said in a statement to AllHipHop.com.
Kim Kardashian to Oprah: ‘Kanye Knows Everything about Me’
In part two of her chat with Oprah Winfrey, Kim Kardashian opens up about her relationship with Kanye West, calling it ”comforting” because he knows everything about her.
One unfortunate aspect the two have in common is the death of a parent. West’s mother Donda died from complications from cosmetic surgery in 2007. Kim’s father Robert Kardashian died of cancer in 2003
”It’s very comforting to have someone that knows everything about you, that respects you, understands, has gone through the similar things,” she tells Winfrey for “Oprah’s Next Chapter.”
”I can really relate to his mother passing. He can really relate to my father passing. I mean, there’s so many similarities in our life that … I feel like I’m at a really happy, good space,” she said.
Kim – who split from husband Kris Humphries in October after just 72 days of marriage – had been friends with Kanye for ”six or seven years” before they started dating earlier this year and she thinks her previous experiences have helped their relationship.
”I don’t know why it took so long for us to get together, but I think I needed to go through all my experiences,” she said.
Vybz Kartel free on drug rap, but remains in custody
Popular entertainer Vybz Kartel was today freed in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court of possession of ganja.
When the matter came for trial today, Katel’s lawyer, Christian Tavares-Finson, argued that based on the police statement there was no way the crown could prove that his client was in possession of the ganja.
The police had reported that they went into a room and saw a spliff among some of Kartel’s belongings.
The crown offered no evidence.
Resident Magistrate Maxine Ellis had queried why the entertainer was still being prosecuted when someone else had pleaded guilty to offence.
Kartel and others were picked up in a hotel room in New Kingston last September after the ganja spliff was found in the room.
US appeals court upholds Buju Banton's conviction
A federal appeals court has upheld Jamaican reggae star Buju Banton's conviction on cocaine conspiracy and trafficking charges.
Banton's attorney, David Markus, argued that a government informant had improperly entrapped the Grammy-winning singer.
A three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled today that the evidence supported Banton's 2011 conviction in Tampa federal court.
The panel also agreed with the jury's conviction of Banton on a gun possession charge, which the trial judge had dismissed after the verdict was read. The judges rejected Banton's argument that his right to a speedy trial had been violated.
Banton's real name is Mark Myrie. He's serving a 10-year prison sentence. Markus says he believes "a good man is in jail for talking a big game."
AP
Moody's downgrades 15 major banks
The credit ratings agency Moody's has downgraded 15 banks and financial institutions.
UK banks downgraded include Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and HSBC.
In the US, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan are among those marked down.
BBC business editor Robert Peston reported on Tuesday that the downgrades were coming and said that banks were concerned as it may make it harder for them to borrow money commercially.
"All of the banks affected by today's actions have significant exposure to the volatility and risk of outsized losses inherent to capital markets activities," Moody's global banking managing director Greg Bauer said in the agency's statement.
The other institutions that have been downgraded are Credit Suisse, UBS, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Societe Generale, Deutsche Bank, Royal Bank of Canada and Morgan Stanley.
Moody's said it recognised, "the clear intent of governments around the world to reduce support for creditors", but added that they had not yet put the frameworks in place that would allow them to let banks fail.
Some of the banks were put on negative outlook, which is a warning that they could be downgraded again later, on the basis that governments may eventually manage to withdraw their support.
In a statement, RBS responded to its downgrade saying: "The group disagrees with Moody's ratings change which the group feels is backward-looking and does not give adequate credit for the substantial improvements the group has made to its balance sheet, funding and risk profile."
The BBC's Scotland business editor Douglas Fraser tweeted: "Cost of RBS downgrade by Moody's: having to post an estimated extra £9bn in collateral for its debts."
Of the banks downgraded, four were cut by one notch on Moody's ranking scale, 10 by two notches and one, Credit Suisse, by three notches.
"The biggest surprise is the three-notch downgrade of Credit Suisse, which no one was looking for," said Mark Grant, managing director of Southwest Securities.
BBC
Moody's downgrades 15 major banks
The credit ratings agency Moody's has downgraded 15 banks and financial institutions.
UK banks downgraded include Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and HSBC.
In the US, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan are among those marked down.
BBC business editor Robert Peston reported on Tuesday that the downgrades were coming and said that banks were concerned as it may make it harder for them to borrow money commercially.
"All of the banks affected by today's actions have significant exposure to the volatility and risk of outsized losses inherent to capital markets activities," Moody's global banking managing director Greg Bauer said in the agency's statement.
The other institutions that have been downgraded are Credit Suisse, UBS, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Societe Generale, Deutsche Bank, Royal Bank of Canada and Morgan Stanley.
Moody's said it recognised, "the clear intent of governments around the world to reduce support for creditors", but added that they had not yet put the frameworks in place that would allow them to let banks fail.
Some of the banks were put on negative outlook, which is a warning that they could be downgraded again later, on the basis that governments may eventually manage to withdraw their support.
In a statement, RBS responded to its downgrade saying: "The group disagrees with Moody's ratings change which the group feels is backward-looking and does not give adequate credit for the substantial improvements the group has made to its balance sheet, funding and risk profile."
The BBC's Scotland business editor Douglas Fraser tweeted: "Cost of RBS downgrade by Moody's: having to post an estimated extra £9bn in collateral for its debts."
Of the banks downgraded, four were cut by one notch on Moody's ranking scale, 10 by two notches and one, Credit Suisse, by three notches.
"The biggest surprise is the three-notch downgrade of Credit Suisse, which no one was looking for," said Mark Grant, managing director of Southwest Securities.
BBC
Spanish banks need up to 62bn euros
An independent audit of Spain's banks has found that they will need up to 62bn euros (£50bn) in extra funding.
European authorities had already agreed to provide up to 100bn euros ahead of assessments of the banks' needs.
Jean-Claude Juncker, the head of the eurogroup, said that Spain would make a formal request for financial assistance before next Monday.
He was speaking at a eurozone finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg which will discuss the bailout.
The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, who was also at the meeting, said that the IMF, the European Union and the ECB - the so-called "troika" overseeing Greece's bailout - will also send representatives to Greece on Monday to review the country's progress in reforming its budget.
That meeting was one of a number of developments on Thursday:
- Eurozone finance ministers are discussing ways to help Spain and Greece in the short term and possible measures to secure the eurozone long-term
- They will consider whether to ease Greece's austerity terms, on the day its new cabinet was announced
- Spain had to pay a record amount to borrow on the open markets, a sign of greater concerns about its finances
- And an economic survey showed that the debt crisis was continuing to depress economic activity, even in Germany
Severe scenario
The estimates of extra funding needed to stabilise Spain's banks came from audits by the US firm Oliver Wyman and German firm Roland Berger.
Oliver Wyman estimated between 51bn euros and 62bn euros would be required, while Roland Berger estimated 51.8bn euros.
They were asked to work out how much money the banks would need if the Spanish economy were to shrink 4.1% this year, 2.1% next year and 0.3% in 2014.
In the adverse scenario they were also asked to model what would happen if house prices fell 19.9% this year, 4.5% next year and 2% in 2014.
Their research covered 14 banking groups that account for 90% of Spain's banking sector.
The figures were announced at a news conference by deputy governor of the Bank of Spain Fernando Restoy.
Mr Restoy declined to comment on individual banks, but said that most of them were deemed to be in a "comfortable" position.
"The [capital needs] are lower than the amount agreed on with the eurogroup to give security and confidence to markets, with enough room to carry out the restructuring," Mr Restoy said.
They were not as large as many analysts expected, according to the BBC's Andrew Walker, who is at the meeting of eurozone finance ministers in Luxembourg.
"Even so, Spain's banks need massive government help to repair the damage done to their finances by the boom and bust in the country's property market," he said.
Spain's short-term cost of borrowing - the yields on government bonds - hit a 16-year high on Thursday.
Madrid sold 2.2bn euros of bonds repayable over two, three and five years.
It paid a yield of 6.07% on five year bonds, up from 4.96% in May.
BBC
China and Brazil in $30bn currency swap agreement
China and Brazil have agreed a currency swap deal in a bid to safeguard against any global financial crisis and strengthen their trade ties.
It will allow their respective central banks to exchange local currencies worth up to 60bn reais or 190bn yuan ($30bn; £19bn).
The amount can be used to shore up reserves in times of crisis, or towards boosting bilateral trade.
China is Brazil's biggest trading partner.
"As international credit remains scarce, we will have enough credit for our transactions," Brazil's Finance Minister, Guido Mantega, said.
A global yuan
The agreement is the latest in a series of similar deals signed by China with its trading partners.
In March this year, it signed a swap deal with Australia worth up to A$30bn ($31bn; £20bn) to promote bi-lateral trade and investment.
It has also inked currency pacts with Hong Kong and Japan.
Analysts said that Beijing has been trying to push for trade to be settled in yuan, rather than in US dollars, as part of its plans to seek a more global role for its currency.
"The motivation is to be less reliant on the US dollar," Sean Callow, chief currency strategist at Westpac, told the BBC.
"We will see firms in the two countries settle their accounts in local currencies," he added.
Mr Callow added that with an increasing number of economies signing such agreements with China, its plans for a more global role for the yuan had received a major boost.
"It is a big positive for China on that account."
Call rates hearing postponed until Monday
The application by Digicel seeking a stay of the implementation date of new interim termination rates announced by the Office of Utilities Regulation suffered a setback today.
This, after LIME and the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) filed applications seeking to intervene in the matter.
Justice Ingrid Mangatal has put off the hearing until Monday.
Following the amendments to the Telecommunications Act, the OUR announced that as of July 15, the interim mobile termination rate would be $5 per minute for incoming domestic and international telephone calls.
However, Digicel is contending that due process was not followed and that it was not consulted before the new rate was set.
It is further contending that the move by the OUR to set the interim mobile termination rates is unconstitutional and contrary to the common law right of natural justice.
Digicel wants the Supreme Court to put a hold on the implementation date for the new rate until its application is heard.
Digicel is seeking to have the court review the law which granted the OUR powers to reduce interconnection rates.
In a statement this week, Digicel’s Head of Legal and Regulatory Affairs, Richard Fraser, was quoted as saying the unfettered powers granted to the regulator are of extreme concern to the company as it effectively makes the OUR judge, jury and executioner.
He further said this cannot go unchallenged as the medium and long term effects of actions like these will be detrimental to the telecoms industry and to the wider Jamaican economy.
Meanwhile, Digicel is also before the courts seeking to challenge an attempt by the FTC to block its takeover of the Claro Network.
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