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BBC news 2012-10-19

BBC News with Sue Montgomery.

The Colombian government and the Farc rebel group have begun peace talks in the Norwegian capital Oslo to try to end half a century of conflict. Farc negotiator has called for a comprehensive deal to achieve lasting peace, but the chief government negotiator reaffirmed that battle against the left-wing rebels would continue until they agree to give up their weapons. Arturo Wallace was watching from Bogota.

Betrayals like all Colombians turned into watch this part of process that many believe could finally put an end to a conflict that had lasted for almost five decades. Through their radios and TV sets, they heard the government's main negotiator, Humberto de la Calle, saying it was a moment of hope and Farc Ivan Marquez insisting the guerrillas were seeking a stable and lasting peace. "We come with an olive branch in our hands," promised the rebel's main negotiator., "but the occasion showcased the huge distance still separating the parties."

Shares in Google have been suspended after falling sharply following release of the company's third-quarter results. Google shares in New York were down 9.1% after results showed profits for the third-quarter fell by a fifth. Adam Brooks reports.

Google had intended to release its earnings report after the close of trading, but the report was putted out early by mistake, it showed that Google's earnings fell by around 20% in the third-quarter when compared to the same period a year ago, to just over $2bn. Google's share price immediately began to fall until trading was halted. Analysts said that cost related the acquisition of Motorola and the strong dollar had contributed to the fall in earnings.

European leaders are holding a summit in Brussels to discuss further moves to resolve the Euro crisis. As they gathered, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for the EU to have real rights to intervene in a national budget of member states, but the French President Francois Holland said it would be banking rather than the budget that would be discussed.

The topic for the council is not budget union, but banking union, so the only decision which we are going to take, which we are going to confirm even. It's the establishment for the banking union before the end of the year, and notably the first step which is banking supervision.

Germany and France differ over how quickly a banking union should be introduced and Mrs. Merkel had a brief talks that started the meeting with Mr. Holland.

Tens of thousands of Greeks have been protesting in Athens where a general strike has been held over the next round of government's spending cuts. Riot police stationed outside the parliament have used tear gas and stun grenades against demonstrators throwing bottles and stones. It's the second general strike in a month, services, including transport and schools, have been badly affected.

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The United State government has offered award above to $12m for information on the whereabouts of two Iran based men alleged to be financial backers of al-Qaeda. The US says the men are key figures in the transfer of funds and extremists through Iran to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Police in Kuwait have arrested two prominent opposition politicians for making statements deemed critical of the emir. The former members of parliaments spoke at a rally as early as this month protesting over possible changes to an election law. On Monday several people were wounded when opposition activists and police clashed at a large anti-government rally. Kuwait is due to hold an election soon after the emir dissolved parliament last week.

Rwanda has been elected to a two-year seat on the United Nations Security Council starting from next year. A recent UN report accused Rwanda of providing troops, weapons and advice to anti-government rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where UN peacekeepers are deployed. Rwanda denies the allegations. Here's Barbra Plett.

Rwanda presented itself as a post-conflict success story, the sixth largest contributor of troops to UN peacekeeping missions with a good record on meeting the UN's Millennium Development Goals. Nevertheless the accusations have cast a shadow over Kigali's reputation. A UN panel of experts has in effect accused its defense minister of commanding an insurgency carried out by the M23 militia in eastern Congo, together with Uganda supplying it with weapons, troops and military aid. A senior Western diplomatic acknowledged that Rwanda's presence could complicate the Security Council's handling of the DRC, especially where consensus is required.

The BBC has said some office broadcast of the Middle East and Europe have been jammed. It is understood other broadcasters are also being affected. The BBC didn't say who was thought was responsible, but earlier this month its satellite provider, Eutelsat, accused Iran of deliberately jamming signals.

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