Portal:Current events/2014 July 15

July 15, 2014 (Tuesday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Operation Protective Edge:
- A ceasefire deal, brokered by Egypt, is accepted by Israel but rejected by Hamas. (The Guardian) (Haaretz)
- Despite the suspension of airstrikes by the IDF for 6 hours as the ceasefire agreement comes into effect, rockets continue to be fired from Gaza and the IDF resumes its military operation as the death toll in Gaza reaches 190. (Reuters)
- The IDF reports that a rocket which started a fire in the Golan Heights was launched from Syria. (Jerusalem Post)
Taliban insurgency:
- A car bomb explodes at a market in the eastern Afghanistan province of Paktika, killing at least 89 people and injuring scores more in one of the deadliest attacks of the war. (BBC News) (Reuters)
2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine:
- An airstrike on the rebel-held town of Snizhne kills at least eleven civilians. (AP via Washington Post)

Business and economy

American chemical company Albemarle Corporation announces plans to buy out competitor Rockwood Holdings in a $6.2 billion cash and stock deal. (AP)
A UK regulatory agency, the Financial Conduct Authority announces plans to cap the interest rates that can be set by payday lenders, as well as their default charges. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

Nineteen immigrants drown as a boat carrying 80 people capsizes off the coast of Malaysia's Tanjung Piai cape. (The Sun Daily)
2014 Pacific typhoon season:
- The Philippines braces for the impact of Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda) which is expected to pass over the capital Manila causing flooding. Thousands have fled to evacuation centres and ports and airports in the country are closed (ABC News Australia), (AAP via SBS)
A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 20 and injuring more than 100 others, 50 of whom seriously. (AP via Daily Mail), (BBC News)

Law and crime

Ten thousand survivors of the Black Saturday bushfires in the Australian state of Victoria in February 2009 win a settlement of A$497.4 million against utility company SP AusNet, its maintenance contractor and the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment for poor inadequate maintenance and protection measures. (BBC News)
Mexican police rescue 458 children and 138 adults from a Great Family Group Home in Michoacán state where they were allegedly badly mistreated including sexual abuse. (AP)

Politics and elections

Salim al-Jabouri is elected as speaker of the Iraqi parliament. (Wall Street Journal)
The European Parliament votes to elect Jean-Claude Juncker as President of the European Commission. (Euronews)
The Croatian parliament passes a law that recognizes life partnerships for same-sex couples, making them equal married couples in everything except adoption. (queer.de)

Sports