Craig Taylor

The bid battle for France’s rail and energy group Alstom shifts in favour of General Electric after the US firm agrees to work with French state on a new offer.
BBC News – Business

Thousands of Shia militia loyal to powerful cleric Moqtada al-Sadr parade in Baghdad, raising sectarian tensions amid fighting in northern Iraq.
BBC News – Middle East

The US pledges millions of dollars in aid to Central American countries, believing it will help reduce the growing number of migrants, especially children.
BBC News – Latin America & Caribbean

Pro-Russian separatists carry out several attacks on Ukrainian troops despite a unilateral ceasefire declared by Kiev, Ukrainian officials say.
BBC News – Europe

Gerry Conlon, who was wrongly convicted of the 1974 IRA Guildford pub bombing, dies aged 60 after a long illness.
BBC News – UK

New York City is to pay $ 40m (£24m) to five men wrongfully convicted in the brutal 1989 rape of a jogger in Central Park.
BBC News – US & Canada

Kenya’s government urges fans to watch World Cup matches at home instead of in crowded areas after deadly attacks along the coast earlier this week.
BBC News – Africa

Oklahoma City Thunder

The government’s flagship welfare policy, Universal Credit, is set to be introduced in 90 jobcentres across north-west England, the work and pensions secretary says.
BBC News – Business

Human Rights Watch says Kurdish authorities ruling parts of northern Syria have committed rights abuses including arbitrary arrests and beatings.
BBC News – Middle East

Mexican officials discover a mass grave with more than 30 bodies in the eastern state of Veracruz, where rival drug gangs have been fighting.
BBC News – Latin America & Caribbean

At least 10 people are killed and several are missing after torrential rain and heavy floods hit the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Varna.
BBC News – Europe

The government is at risk of breaching its self-imposed limit on welfare spending due to the rising costs of the main sickness benefit, leaked documents say.
BBC News – UK

President Obama says the US is sending up to 300 “military advisers” to Iraq and may take “targeted military action” against Islamist insurgents.
BBC News – US & Canada

The White House announces visa restrictions and other measures on Uganda for anti-gay laws it says are “counter to universal human rights”.
BBC News – Africa

OKLAHOMA CITY, June 19, 2014 – Oklahoma City Thunder forward Nick Collison underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on
Oklahoma City Thunder

Oklahoma City Thunder

The US Federal Reserve cuts its growth forecast for 2014 because of the unexpectedly harsh winter and trims back its stimulus programme.
BBC News – Business

Iraq formally asks the US to launch air strikes against jihadist militants who have recently seized key cities.
BBC News – Middle East

The International Monetary Fund warns that Argentina’s legal defeat in its fight against hedge fund investors may have wider implications.
BBC News – Latin America & Caribbean