Source: Reuters

The U.S. State Department on Friday told U.S. citizens in Turkey to "shelter in place and stay indoors" citing Turkey's government saying that elements of the Turkish army were attempting an uprising.

"U.S. citizens in #Turkey should shelter in place & stay indoors. Update family/friends of your status when possible," the State Department tweeted.



Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-usa-alert-idUSKCN0ZV2NU

(CNN)The Turkish military has taken over the government and imposed martial law, according to an announcement read by an anchor on state broadcaster TRT.

The statement was made on behalf of the "Peace in the Nation" council, the announcer said. "The political administration that has lost all legitimacy has been forced to withdraw," the anchor said.

Early Saturday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged people to take to the streets and stand up to the military during a coup attempt.

"Go to the streets and give them their answer," he told residents during a Facetime interview on CNN Turk.

"I am coming to a square in Ankara. ... This was done from outside the chain of command," he said of the military. "Those who are responsible, we will give them the necessary punishment," he said. It was not clear where he was speaking from.

MORE...

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/15/asia/turkey-military-action/

Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are reportedly blocked in Turkey amid talk of an attempted coup.

The social media sites were blocked on Friday as tanks barged through the streets of Istanbul during what Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim called an attempted coup by parts of the nation's military.

The military activity in Istanbul and the capital of Ankara was unexpected and sudden. Initial reports emerged of military jets flying low over Ankara while the main bridges across The Bosphorus, the water body that separates the European half from the Asian half of Istanbul, were closed by armed forces.

Military officers have reportedly taken over the state broadcasting network and announced they have assumed control of the country, though other government officials dispute this.

MORE...

http://mashable.com/2016/07/15/turkey-facebook-twitter-youtube-blocked-attempted-coup/#j.144IWvx8qw

Turkey’s government appears to have been overthrown in a coup, as the military claimed taking control over the country.

Heavily armed soldiers and military vehicles closed the two main bridges in Istanbul Friday evening, and while low-flying military jets could be heard overhead.

Tanks have been posted outside Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport and in other locations in the city.

Access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube is being blocked, while the state-owned TRT television has gone off the air, according to reports from inside Turkey. It's website shows weather.

President Recep Erdogan is reportedly on vacation in the southern Turkish resort town of Bodrum. His status is currently unknown.

MORE...

https://www.rt.com/news/351343-turkey-coup-military-attempt/

Turkish Army Take Over State TV, Impose Martial Law

https://www.rt.com/news/351363-turkey-army-invades-tv/

Source: Reuters

The U.S. military expects to seek additional troops in Iraq, even beyond the hundreds announced this week, as the campaign against the Islamic State advances, the head of the U.S. military's Central Command told Reuters.

"As we continue on the mission, I think there will be some additional troops that we will ask to bring in," U.S. Army General Joseph Votel said in an interview in Baghdad on Thursday, without disclosing a number.

Votel, who oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East, said the size of possible future increases were still being discussed within military circles. He did not offer details on the timing of any requests to President Barack Obama's administration.

His remarks came just three days after Obama's administration announced a 560 troop increase as part of an effort to facilitate an Iraqi offensive to retake Mosul, Iraq's second biggest city.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-usa-iraq-idUSKCN0ZV0CZ

The driver of the truck that killed at least 80 people in Nice on Thursday evening was a 31-year-old resident born in Tunisia, according to French newspaper Nice Matin.


Heavy weapons and grenades were found inside the truck.

French newspaper Le Figaro reports that driver fired at the crowd as he drove.

While the terrorist group Daesh, also known as IS/ISIL, has not officially claimed responsibility for the attack, it is a likely suspect.

more...

http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160715/1042999633/nice-truck-driver-tunisia.html

Source: Washington Post



By Bradley Klapper | AP July 14 at 5:48 PM

MOSCOW — The United States on Thursday offered Russia a broad new military partnership in Syria, hoping the attraction of a unified campaign against the Islamic State group and al-Qaida — and a Russian commitment to ground Syria’s bombers — could end five years of civil war. If finalized, the deal could dramatically alter America’s role in the conflict.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Thursday to present him the new ideas. The eight-page proposal, which The Washington Post published on its website, shows the U.S. offering intelligence and targeting sharing, and even joint bombing operations. It is a pact Moscow long had wanted, but the Obama administration resisted.

“Hopefully we’ll be able to make some genuine progress that is measurable and implementable and that can make a difference in the course of events in Syria,” Kerry said.

Putin said he was looking for “tangible results.”

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/leaked-proposal-us-offering-russia-military-pact-in-syria/2016/07/14/b562e920-4998-11e6-8dac-0c6e4accc5b1_story.html

Source: CBS NEWS

Last Updated Jul 14, 2016 5:33 PM EDT

NEW YORK — Police officials say they have identified “traces of substances” in the blast in New York City’s Central Park earlier this month that seriously injured a man who stepped on it, CBS New York reported.

A law enforcement source told CBS News that NYPD lab results have come back with traces of TAPT in the explosion. TAPT contains triacetone triperoxide, which can be assembled with household chemicals.

CBS New York previously reported that Connor Golden, 18, of Fairfax, Virginia, was walking with two friends in early July when he climbed down a rock and stepped on some sort of homemade device, triggering the explosion. Connor lost part of one leg in the incident.

“The next call from my son, Connor’s father, is that his leg from his knee down would have to be amputated,” Connor’s grandmother Roberta Golden said. “His life will never be the same and I am very sad about that.”

Read more: http://www.wdef.com/2016/07/14/nypd-traces-of-tapt-explosive-found-in-central-park-explosion/

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Report: Central Park Explosive Featured Material 'Used In Terrorist Attacks For Decades

WASHINGTON (ABC7) — The explosive device that went off in Central Park more than a week ago and injured a Fairfax man was made using a homemade explosive that "has been used in terrorist attacks for decades", law enforcement officials reportedly tell CNN.

--CLIP
"TATP is a notoriously unstable explosive that has been used in terrorist attacks for decades, including in the Paris attacks last fall and by the shoe bomber Richard Reid," CNN reports. "It's often made from common household chemicals, such as beauty supplies."

Officials tell CNN that no "additional contents" were found with the explosive.

http://wjla.com/news/nation-world/report-central-park-explosive-featured-material-used-in-terrorist-attacks-for-decades

Source: Bloomberg

July 14, 2016 — 8:30 AM EDT Updated on July 14, 2016 — 9:38 AM EDT

The number of applications for U.S. unemployment benefits last week held at the lowest level since mid-April, further evidence of a strong labor market.

Jobless claims were unchanged at 254,000 in the week ended July 9, according to a Labor Department report released Thursday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey called for filings to increase to 265,000. In April, applications dropped to a four-decade low of 248,000.



Companies having trouble finding qualified and skilled workers are hesitant to dismiss employees as demand shows signs of picking up after a weak start to the year. Weekly claims have been below 300,000 for 71 straight weeks, the longest period since 1973 and consistent with robust employment conditions.

“The U.S. economy is doing fine,” said Thomas Costerg, a senior U.S. economist at Standard Chartered Bank in New York. Still, “it’s difficult to go down further in jobless claims. We may have reached the bottom.”

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-14/jobless-claims-in-u-s-hold-at-lowest-level-since-mid-april

Source: Bloomberg

July 14, 2016 — 10:48 AM EDT Updated on July 14, 2016 — 5:04 PM EDT

Microsoft Corp. won’t be forced to turn over e-mails stored in Ireland to the U.S. government for a drug investigation, an appeals court said in a decision that may affect data security throughout the U.S. technology industry.

The ruling on Thursday overturned a 2014 decision ordering Microsoft to hand over messages of a suspected drug trafficker. The company argued that would create a “global free-for-all” with foreign countries forcing companies to turn over evidence stored in the U.S. The government said a ruling in favor of Microsoft would create legal loophole to be exploited by fraudsters, hackers and drug traffickers.

The law doesn’t “authorize courts to issue and enforce against U.S.-based service providers warrants for the seizure of customer e-mail content that is stored exclusively on foreign servers,” U.S. Circuit Judge Susan Carney wrote for the majority of the New York appeals court.

The government is considering its options, Peter Carr, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, said in a statement.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-14/microsoft-wins-appeal-in-case-over-customers-e-mail-security