Johnny Depp dropped in at the Australian Bat Clinic & Wildlife Trauma Centre over the weekend to see how Jackie Sparrow – an orphaned bat he sponsored in May – was doing.
Of course, he had to visit while dressed in full Jack Sparrow costume.
The bat clinic posted a video of Johnny Depp bottle feeding the flying fox, who is now 10 weeks old and teething.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmxyZiEduKo
Bobbi Kristina Brown will be given a funeral service this week in Atlanta, Georgia, after which her body will be flown to New Jersey where she will be buried alongside her mother, ET reported.
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown’s daughter died on Sunday, July 26, nearly six months after being found unresponsive in her bathtub. She was 22.
Bobbi Kristina Brown’s mother died on February 11, 2012, after she was found unconscious in a bathtub at The Beverly Hilton Hotel.
The singer was laid to rest eight days later at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield, New Jersey. Whitney Houston was buried next to her father, John Russell Houston.
Bobbi Kristina Brown was found unresponsive in her bathtub on January 31, 2015, and was then taken to North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, Georgia, where she was put on a ventilator to assist her breathing. She was later placed in a medically induced coma at Atlanta’s Emory University Hospital.
Nearly two months later, Bobbi Kristina Brown was moved to a rehabilitation center, where she remained until June 24, when she was moved to the hospice center where she died on July 26.
According to the hospital, Joe Jackson was admitted on Sunday afternoon and is being treated in the intensive care unit.
A statement from the hospital also said Joe Jackson was suffering from an irregular heartbeat.
Joe Jackson is in Brazil to celebrate his 87th birthday.
According to local media, he was absent from his own party because he was already in the hospital.
Photos from Joe Jackson’s official website show him dining in Sao Paulo restaurants.
Joe Jackson managed his sons’ musical group in the early 1960s, first working with his three eldest sons, Jackie, Tito and Jermaine and then younger sons Marlon and Michael, forming the Jackson 5.
Although they would go on to achieve huge commercial success, it was reported that Joe Jackson was often abusive towards his family.
Michael Jackson died from an overdose of sedatives on June 25, 2009, at the age of 50.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDk2RSSR6CU
Ant-Man took $24.8 million over the weekend, bringing its US earnings to $106.1 million.
Pixels, which scored generally unfavorable reviews on Metacritic, missed first place with $24 million on its debut weekend.
However, Adam Sandler’s movie attracted younger people with 62% of its audience aged under 25.
The comedy sees an alien race trying to wipe out mankind using 1980s video game characters like Pac-Man.
Despicable Me prequel Minions and Amy Schumer comedy Trainwreck took the third and fourth spots with $22.1 million and $17.3 million, respectively.
Southpaw, a drama starring Jake Gyllenhaal, landed a strong uppercut, placing in the top five with a $16.5 million opening.
Paper Towns, an adaptation of John Green’s novel, starring Cara Delevigne, opened in sixth place with $12.5 million.
According to exit polls, 71% of Paper Towns audience was female and 78% were under age 25.
North American box office Top 5:
Large businesses have typically shied away from using virtual telephone systems preferring instead to use traditional in-house PBX systems. The reasons for this are varied but virtual systems just did not provide the tremendous advantages to them as large companies as it did small and medium businesses. Large businesses would already have feature rich systems that could manage call queuing and many of the specialized features required to support contact centers and large salerooms. However, lately there has been a shift towards virtualization due to rising confidence in the internet and the cloud service provider’s capabilities. Similarly, advances in technology have seen vast improvements in internet bandwidth via xDSL and this has circumvented the problem with call quality and capacity. Both of were major concerns for large companies, as dropped call, distorted voice and failure to establish a call did little to enhance the company’s reputation in the eye of their customers.
However, with these improvements in the core technologies performance and confidence has risen and we are now seeing large company’s looking at virtual telephone systems. So what are the direct benefits that they can now get out of a virtual system?
To conclude, it is now advantageous for large companies to consider virtual telephone services. Whereas before the technology and services were not mature. Now improvements have removed some of the disadvantageous and they deliver real benefits in price and operational savings.
As of Sunday afternoon, Monster Hunt had earned 1.317 billion yuan ($212 million) since it opened on July 16, Xinhua said.
The previous record was held by 2012 road trip comedy Lost in Thailand which earned about 1.27 billion yuan.
Fantasy comedy Monster Hunt, a blend of live-action and animation, tells the story of a radish-like baby monster called Huba.
The movie is set in a fantasy world resembling ancient China, where monsters and humans co-exist uneasily in two separate lands.
When revolutionaries in the monsters’ world attempt to overthrow their royalty, the monster queen flees to the land of humans and impregnates a hapless human man, Tianyin, with Huba.
He ends up being pursued by both monsters and monster-hating humans keen on capturing the newborn Huba.
Monster Hunt was directed by Raman Hui, who co-directed 2007’s Shrek the Third.
The Hollywood Reporter said that, outside China, Monster Hunt faces stiff competition from the likes of Minions and Inside Out.
The highest grossing movie ever in China is Furious 7, which earned about 2 billion yuan after it opened in April.
The Shanghai Composite closed down 8.5% at 3,725.56 after more weak economic data raised concerns about the health of world’s second largest economy.
Profit at China’s industrial companies dropped 0.3% in June from a year ago.
That followed data on July 24 indicating that factory activity in July seen its worse performance for 15 months.
The Shanghai market’s fall was the biggest one-day loss since February 2007.
While there was little to explain why shares were being sold at such a level, analysts said fears that China might hold off from further measures to boost the economy had contributed to concerns among investors.
The stock market has been benefitting from a series of support measures from the government and regulators after it lost a third of its value in the three weeks from mid-June.
Since late June, Chinese authorities have cut interest rates, suspended initial public offerings, eased margin-lending and pushed brokerages to buy stocks, backed by money from the central bank.
Chinese shares had recovered about 15% of their value before today’s plunge – showing some signs of stabilization.
On July 27 stocks fell across the board, including benchmark index heavyweights such as China Unicom, Bank of Communications and PetroChina.
More than 1,500 shares listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell by their daily downward limit of 10%.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed down 3.1% at 24,351.96 – its biggest loss in three weeks.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 1% to 20,350.10, while South Korea’s Kospi index finished 0.4% lower at 2,038.81.
Australian stocks bucked the downward trend, closing up 0.3% at 5,582.40.
Bobbi Kristina Brown had been in a coma since January 31, when she was discovered unresponsive in a bathtub.
Family representative Kristen Foster said the only child of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown passed away on July 26 surrounded by her family and was “finally at peace in the arms of God”.
Bobbi Kristina Brown’s family posted the following tribute on Whitney Houston’s Facebook page : “It is hard to say goodbye. On Sunday, July 26, Bobbi Kristina Brown made her transition peacefully. The family thanks everyone for their loving thoughts and prayers.
“As Bobbi Kristina would say: <<The wind is behind me and the sun is in my face>>.”
The 61-year-old German chancellor apparently sat on a broken chair inside a coffee bar and fell, according to Merkel’s representatives who were cited by the German news outlet. She was out for a few minutes before being helped up by others inside the restaurant.
Bild and Spiegel initially reported Angela Merkel “fainted.”
It’s unclear whether or not she was hurt.
Both publications later printed a government statement saying it was nothing of the sort. Her chair was faulty and collapsed.
Chancellor Angela Merkel went on to watch Tristan und Isolde, which she said she enjoyed.
Barack Obama is the first serving US leader to visit Ethiopia.
The president is due to hold talks with government officials and to discuss the civil war in South Sudan with regional leaders.
Barack Obama will also be the first US president to address the 54-member African Union at its headquarters in Addis Ababa on July 28.
He flew to Ethiopia after a two-day visit to Kenya.
There he had discussed trade and security but also called for greater human rights and warned of the dangers of corruption.
Barack Obama was greeted at Addis Ababa’s international airport by Ethiopian PM Hailemariam Desalegn.
On July 27, Barack Obama is due to discuss ways to bring South Sudan’s 19-month-old civil war to an end.
In talks with leaders from Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda as well as the Sudanese foreign minister, he is expected to call for tougher sanctions and a possible arms embargo if the warring factions do not agree on a peace deal.
However, a US official travelling with Barack Obama said today’s talks were not expected to lead to a breakthrough.
“This is an opportunity to reinforce the effort that’s on the table and to strategize… on next steps in the event that it doesn’t succeed,” the official told reporters.
Fighting in South Sudan has left thousands of people dead and displaced more than two million.
Security issues will also be on Barack Obama’s agenda as Ethiopia, like Kenya, is battling the jihadist group al-Shabab.
Correspondents say he is also likely to call for greater democracy and human rights while in Ethiopia.
Ethiopia’s ruling party, the EPRDF, and its allies won every single parliamentary seat in May’s elections. Opposition parties claimed the process was rigged.
Some rights groups have criticized Barack Obama’s visit to Ethiopia, warning that the trip could lend credibility to a government accused of jailing journalists and critics.
Amnesty International’s Abdullahi Halakhe said: “We don’t want this visit to be used to sanitize an administration that has been known to violate human rights.”
Human Rights Watch and other organizations urged Barack Obama to put the “pressing human rights concerns… at the forefront of your discussions”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnhAV9KxfJg
The daughter of late singer Whitney Houston was 22.
Kristen Foster said Bobbi Kristina Brown passed away surrounded by her family and was “finally at peace in the arms of God”.
Bobbi Kristina Brown was discovered unresponsive in a bathtub on January 31 and placed in a medically induced coma. She never regained consciousness.
She was moved to a hospice in the city of Duluth, Georgia, a month ago after her condition deteriorated.
Bobbi Kristina Brown was the only daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown.
Whitney Houston was found dead in a hotel bath in Los Angeles in 2012.
“Bobbi Kristina Brown passed away July 26 2015, surrounded by her family,” Kristen Foster said.
“She is finally at peace in the arms of God. We want to again thank everyone for their tremendous amount of love and support during these last few months.”
In January, police said Bobbi Kristina Brown was found face down in a bathtub in the suburban Atlanta home she shared with Nick Gordon, the man she called her husband. A police report described the incident as a “drowning”.
Nick Gordon said at the time she did not appear to be breathing and lacked a pulse before emergency services arrived.
Bobbi Kristina Brown was placed in a medically-induced coma and has been breathing with the aid of a ventilator.
The balloon dog, on display in Utah, measured 65ft long and 32ft tall, which a Guinness World Record official said “blew the old record out of the water”.
The giant pink dog creation took over 15 days and used up nearly 9,000 balloons.
Jeremy Telford built it without a support sculpture so the rubber pooch is not free-standing.
Jeremy Telford has also built a Lord of the Rings-inspired model of Bilbo Baggins’ Bag End and the Seven Wonders of the World.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5bbjdS0taY
On July 25, President Barack Obama discussed security issues with his Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Later on Sunday, Barack Obama will fly on to Ethiopia.
The Kasarani stadium, where Barack Obama will make his speech, was last year used as a controversial detention camp for hundreds of Somalis during an operation against the Islamist group al-Shabab.
Barack Obama is expected to warn that such tactics risk alienating communities and stoking radicalism.
On July 25, Barack Obama acknowledged the role the Kenyan government had played in the fight against militant groups such as al-Shabab.
Al-Shabab has carried out a deadly campaign in Kenya including the 2013 attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping centre and an attack in April in Garissa that killed nearly 150 people.
Security has been tight for Barack Obama’s two-day visit to Kenya.
The trip, which began on July 24, is his first visit as president to the land where his father was born.
In Ethiopia, Barack Obama will be the first US president to visit the country. He will also become the first US leader to address the 54-member African Union (AU) on July 28.
AU Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma described Barack Obama’s trip to Ethiopia as a “historic visit” that would “broaden and deepen the relationship between the AU and the US”.
On July 25, Barack Obama praised Africa’s economic and business potential in a speech at a business summit.
He also visited a memorial for those killed in the 1998 US embassy bombing in Nairobi.
After holding bilateral talks, Barack Obama and Uhuru Kenyatta said they were “united against terrorism”.
However, the two leaders differed sharply in their positions on gay rights.
While Barack Obama spoke strongly against discrimination, Uhuru Kenyatta said Kenya did not share the same values.
The explosion late on July 25 happened in the town of Lice in Diyarbakir, the province governor’s office said.
The attack came after Turkey bombed Kurdish separatist camps in northern Iraq – the first such strikes since a peace process began in 2012.
No group has claimed responsibility for the latest attack.
The Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) threatened to break off a two-year ceasefire following Saturday’s raids.
There has been a wave of unrest after a suicide bomb in Suruc, blamed on so-called ISIS killed 32 people – mainly university students planning to carry out aid work in Kobane, Syria.
It has included protests and confrontations with police in Ankara and Istanbul.
The PKK’s military wing killed two Turkish police officers on July 22, claiming they had collaborated with ISIS in the bombing in Suruc.
The US has called on both sides to avoid violence, but stressed that Turkey has the right to defend itself against attacks by Kurdish rebels.
The Turkish government has failed to stop ISIS, seeing the group as a useful tool against its Kurdish enemy, the PKK.
Sporadic attacks including one on a police station in Istanbul have raised the specter of a return to conflict between the Turkish state and Kurdish separatists that blighted the country for 30 years and killed 40,000 people.
At a packed rally at Oskaloosa High School on July 25, Donald Trump said: “Finally, I can attack!”
“Wisconsin’s doing terribly. It’s in turmoil. The roads are a disaster because they don’t have any money to rebuild them. They’re borrowing money like crazy. They projected a $1 billion surplus, and it turns out to be a deficit of $2.2 billion. The schools are a disaster. The hospitals and education was a disaster. And he was totally in favor of Common Core!”
The mention of the state-driven education standards — from which Scott Walker, like many Republican governors, has walked away — incited a prolonged boo.
Donald Trump also told a story about Scott Walker giving him a “beautiful plaque” out of gratitude for campaign donations and wondered if: “Wisconsin paid for it.”
Republicans’ hopes of banishing Donald Trump from their presidential primary may have wilted in the heat of the Iowa summer. On his first visit to the caucus state since the McCain insult, Donald Trump drew a crowd of 1,300 in a city of 11,463. He cleaned up his remarks about veterans, from the stage and in the crowd. He talked with characteristic gusto about “killing in the polls and” securing a spot in the party’s first sanctioned debate, scheduled for August 6.
“I’m going to be there, much to the chagrin of many people,” Donald Trump told reporters.
As they lined up for the speech, conservative Iowans fell into two camps. One group adored Donald Trump’s brio, but wished he hadn’t gotten personal with John McCain (R-Ariz.). The larger camp egged Donald Trump on for again refusing to play nice. Although a Washington Post/ABC News poll showed Donald Trump’s ratings slipping after his comments about John McCain, the crowd in Oskaloosa saw another reason to trust him. Some Republican voters, who had dutifully turned out for “anti-establishment” candidates and been disappointed, insisted that Donald Trump was just the man to blow up the system.
In Oskaloosa, Donald Trump told his main audience, of 700, about his July 23 visit to the US-Mexico border. He told an overflow audience that President Barack Obama had failed POWs by winning Bowe Bergdahl’s release from the Taliban but not getting Iran to turn over hostages.
He also won cheers for telling how he denied credentials to the Des Moines Register, Iowa’s largest newspaper, after its editorial board called on him to quit the race. In a back-and-forth with reporters, with the Register’s team kept outside his event, Donald Trump proved that he was comfortable being playful with the facts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqQ89J1D45o
Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said at a campaign stop in Iowa: “I did not send nor receive anything that was classified at the time.”
The email controversy has dogged Hillary Clinton’s bid for the presidency, fuelling worries that the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination has tried to sidestep transparency and record-keeping laws.
At least four emails from the private email account that Hillary Clinton used while secretary of state contained classified information, Inspector General Charles McCullough, who oversees US intelligence agencies, told members of Congress in a letter on July 23.
However, Hillary Clinton said on July 25 she had “no idea” what were the emails mentioned in the letter.
Charles McCullough’s letter said a sampling of 40 of about 30,000 emails sent or received by Hillary Clinton found at least four that contained information the government had classified as secret.
The information was classified at the time that the emails were sent, he said.
The use of her private email account, linked to a server in her New York home for work, has drawn fire from political opponents since coming to light in March.
Republicans have accused Hillary Clinton of trying to avoid disclosure laws through her use of private systems.
Hillary Clinton, the frontrunner to represent the Democratic Party in the November 2016 election, has repeatedly said she broke no laws or rules by eschewing a standard government email account.
This is Starbucks’ highest ever quarterly revenue.
The company’s boss, Howard Schultz has described the performance: “Among the strongest and most remarkable quarters in our over 23 years as a public company.”
The rise was mostly thanks to it buying out its previous Japanese partner Starbucks Japan and new store openings.
The world’s largest coffee chain opened 431 new stores in the period.
Like-for-like sales – which strip out the effect of new store openings – increased by 7%.
Starbucks’ total net profit rose 22% to $626.7 million.
Howard Schultz said the sales increase meant it had served 23 million more customers in the quarter compared to the same period last year. Of those 18 million were from the US.
It said its loyalty program had helped to drive its strong performance. The chain has worked with other companies such as ride-sharing service Lyft and music streaming firm Spotify.
Both companies give their customers a chance to earn Starbucks “starts” which can be used in Starbucks’ shops.
Shares rose more than 3% in after hours trading.
According to the publication, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to fine Fiat Chrysler and assign an independent monitor to audit the company’s recall processes for an extended period as part of a sweeping settlement.
The government penalties target lapses spanning nearly two dozen recalls affecting more than 11 million Fiat Chrysler vehicles, including older Jeeps with rear gasoline tanks linked to numerous fatal fires.
The fines are tied to legal violations in an array of areas, including misleading and obstructing regulators; inadequate and lagging repairs; and failing to alert car owners to recalls in a timely manner, the WSJ said.
With 1.56 million recalled Jeeps linked to deadly fires, the agency has accused Fiat Chrysler of lagging in installing trailer hitches on the backs of vehicles for added protection in lower-speed collisions. Fiat Chrysler has said vehicle owners are often unwilling to get repairs despite many outreaches from the company.
The government penalties come days after regulators separately started probing Fiat Chrysler’s handling of recalled vehicles with possible cybersecurity flaws, after hackers commandeered controls of a moving Jeep. Those vehicles aren’t included in the settlement expected to be disclosed in the coming week.
The African-American woman died in a Texas prison cell nearly two weeks ago after being taken in custody.
According to the autopsy report, Sandra Bland committed suicide by hanging herself. But her family rejected this and ordered a separate post-mortem.
Sandra Bland, 28, was found dead on July 13, three days after she was arrested.
She was taken in custody after a confrontation with the officer who had stopped her for not signaling when changing lanes.
State officials and the FBI are investigating the woman’s death.
Mourners including local politicians queued for more than an hour outside the DuPage African Methodist Episcopal Church in Lisle to file past an open coffin and attend the funeral, Reuters news agency reported.
So many mourners came that an overflow crowd had to watch a live video feed in the basement, it said.
Some of those present had never met her.
Footage of the July 10 arrest, released by the Texas Department of Public Safety, shows Sandra Bland’s car being pulled over for failing to signal, followed by an altercation with the lone officer.
Sandra Bland was taken into custody and charged with assaulting a police officer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRI_-o5Kelg
The never-before-seen 9/11 photos show George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and senior officials in their immediate response to the attacks.
The photos, taken by then-Vice President Dick Cheney’s staff photographer, show the scene inside the president’s Emergency Operations Center as officials worked the phones amid the fallout.
Dick Cheney is seen in several photos watching on a small square television in his office as smoke billows from the World Trade Center, and other photos show him with his glasses off and hands clasped.
Former CIA Director George Tenet, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of State Colin Powell are seen in the photographs, along with first lady Laura Bush.
Many photos show blank or grim expressions as officials speak among themselves or watch President George W. Bush address the nation hours after the attacks.
The photos were released as part of a Freedom of Information Act request filed by Colette Hanna, a documentary coordinating producer for films appearing on Frontline.
More than 350 photos from 9/11 can be viewed on the US National Archives’ Flickr page here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1CGReBMlo4
After talks in Nairobi, Presidents Barack Obama and Uhuru Kenyatta said they were “united against terrorism” and efforts to deal with it.
However, the two leaders differed sharply in their positions on gay rights.
While Barack Obama spoke strongly against discrimination, Uhuru Kenyatta said Kenya did not share the same values.
There were “some things that we must admit we don’t share – our culture, our societies don’t accept,” Uhuru Kenyatta said.
“It’s very difficult for us to be able to impose on people that which they themselves do not accept.”
Earlier President Barack Obama praised Africa’s economic and business potential in a speech.
“Africa is on the move… People are being lifted out of poverty, incomes are up (and) the middle class is growing,” he told a business summit.
He also visited a memorial for those killed in the 1998 US embassy bombing.
The trip, which began on July 24, is Barack Obama’s first visit as president to Kenya, where his father was born.
Barack Obama said he was encouraged by statements President Uhuru Kenyatta had made about the need to root out corruption.
People were being “consistently sapped by corruption at a high level and at a low level” and there was a need for “visible prosecutions,” Barack Obama said, to show Kenyans that action was being taken.
“They don’t have to be a forensic accountant to know what is going on.”
Police officers and civil servants had to be paid properly to help curb corruption, but sometimes it just required “breaking the habit”.
President Barack Obama also said the US is providing additional funding and assistance to Kenya’s security forces for counter-terrorism.
The US and Kenya are working to establish direct flights.
The Obama administration will also propose a federal rule banning the sale of almost all ivory across state lines as part of efforts to fight poaching in Africa.
Taylor Swift has admitted she misunderstood Nicki Minaj’s initial tweets, which attacked the music industry for favoring white females.
The singer wrote: “I thought I was being called out. I missed the point, then misspoke, I’m sorry, Nicki.”
Nicki Minaj has accepted her apology by tweeting back: “That means so much Taylor, thank you.”
It all started after Nicki Minaj voiced her disappointment at Anaconda not getting a nomination for video of the year.
“If your video celebrates women with very slim bodies, you will be nominated for vid of the year,” she wrote.
“When the <<other>> girls drop a video that breaks records and impacts culture they get that nomination.”
This spurred Taylor Swift into action, who felt the comment was directed at her getting a nod for her Bad Blood video, which includes a lot of slim white females.
“I’ve done nothing but love & support you. It’s unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot,” Taylor Swift wrote.
This confused Nicki Minaj who replied: “Huh? U must not be reading my tweets. Didn’t say a word about u. I love u just as much. But u should speak on this.”
Nicki Minaj said she wasn’t attacking Taylor Swift personally, but was trying to highlight the challenges minority artists face getting the same recognition.
Other celebrities then got involved in the Twitter row, including Katy Perry.
Katy Perry, who is widely thought to be the inspiration behind Bad Blood, wrote: “Finding it ironic to parade the pit women against other women argument about as one unmeasurably capitalizes on the take down of a woman…”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehpi2JTzGdM
When the hip-hop pioneer returned to pick up the vehicle after nearly two hours, the parking attendant said he had given it to someone else thinking he was the owner.
The incident happened in a Manhattan garage on the evening of July 16 and is being treated as theft.
Grandmaster Flash, 57, said the missing Dodge Charger had contained valuable vintage records.
The musician, whose real name is Joseph Saddler, tweeted that the attendant “gave the car to somebody that was dressed like me, minus the Pumas”.
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were at the forefront of developing hip-hop with their celebrated album The Message in 1982 and the hit White Lines.
They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPpu-DLX9-M
Civilians acting as unofficial guards have appeared outside some centers since five service personnel were shot dead last week in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Military personnel are generally barred from carrying firearms at recruitment centers and bases.
The Pentagon says it appreciates the support but armed civilians could pose an unintended security risk.
In a statement spokesman Peter Cook said: “While we greatly appreciate the outpouring of support for our recruiters from the American public, we ask that individuals not stand guard at recruiting offices as it could adversely impact our mission, and potentially create unintended security risks.
“We continue to partner with and rely on first responders for the safety of the communities where our service members live and work.”
According to officials, the Chattanooga gunman – 24-year-old gunman Muhammed Youssef Abdulazeez – acted alone when he attacked two military facilities, killing five service members.
Muhammed Youssef Abdulazeez was shot and killed by police during the attack. His motive was unclear.
Since then, armed civilians – some of them members of private militias – have turned up outside recruitment centers saying they are supporting those inside.
One group appeared in Cleburne, Texas, armed with assault rifles and calling themselves Operation Hero Guard.
In Lancaster, Ohio, armed civilians were ordered off the property after one accidentally discharged his rifle into the pavement.
US officials say there is no indication of further danger to recruitment centers and the government does not intend to change the way they are staffed.
Ahmet Davutoglu added that 590 suspected ISIS and PKK members had been arrested.
It follows a week which saw a bomb attack blamed on ISIS kill 32 people in the Turkish town of Suruc.
Subsequent clashes with ISIS militants on the Turkey-Syria border led to the death of a Turkish soldier.
The PKK’s military wing said it had killed two Turkish police officers on July 22, claiming they had collaborated with ISIS in the bombing in Suruc, which targeted left-wing activists.
A government statement on July 25 said the air force had hit PKK shelters, bunkers, storage facilities and other “logistic points” in northern Iraq, including the Qandil mountains where the PKK’s high command is based.
It did not give details of what the jets had targeted in their attacks on ISIS in Syria.
Turkey’s military had also shelled Islamic State and PKK positions from across the Turkish border, the statement said.
Speaking to reporters on July 25, PM Ahmet Davutoglu said: “Unfortunately Turkey is surrounded by a ring of fire.
“In such an atmosphere, Turkey tries to keep her democracy and development alive… these operations have carried a message to the countries in the region and to international circles: whatever happens in Syria and Iraq, in our border regions, we will not allow them to threaten Turkey’s security and will not hesitate to take necessary measures.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said areas of northern Syria cleared of ISIS fighters would become natural “safe zones”.
Turkey has also said it will let the US use a key airbase to attack ISIS targets.
The group has been fighting Turkey for an autonomous homeland for the Kurds for decades.
In a statement on its website quoted by Reuters news agency, the PKK said: “The truce has no meaning any more after these intense air strikes by the occupant Turkish army.”
The Turkish government has faced criticism at home and abroad for not doing enough against ISIS, despite being part of the international coalition fighting it.
The first round of anti-ISIS air strikes on July 24 marked the first time Turkey had confirmed air strikes against targets in Syria since ISIS began its advance through Iraq and Syria in 2013.
The agreement to let the US use the Incirlik airbase, following months of negotiations, was made in a phone call between President Barack Obama and his Turkish counterpart, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – but has yet to be approved by the Turkish cabinet.
The Turkish government could allow the US to step up air strikes against ISIS, as it is closer to northern Syria and Iraq than the Gulf, which currently serves as a launch-pad for bombing missions.