Midday Roundup: Car bomb in Istanbul kills 11

Terror in Turkey. A car bomb in central Istanbul killed seven police officers and four civilians during morning rush hour today. The bombing, so far not claimed by any terror group, targeted a police bus and used a remote-controlled explosive device. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan quickly blamed the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and vowed to “fight terrorists to the end.” Kurdish militants have claimed responsibility for other recent attacks targeting the country’s security forces. The escalating violence has prompted a sharp decline in tourism, and the popular hotel near today’s attack was mostly empty. Today’s attack was the fourth in Istanbul this year. The Kurds, allies of the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State terrorists in northern Iraq, have long sought autonomy in Turkey’s southeast region. A two-year cease-fire between the groups broke down last summer.

Erasing history. Republicans on Capitol Hill are pressing U.S. State Department officials to explain why someone intentionally deleted eight minutes of video from a briefing about nuclear talks with Iran. Lawmakers are demanding documents pertaining to the doctored 2013 video and have called for a probe by the department’s inspector general. The House Oversight Committee plans to ask Secretary of State John Kerry to testify about the matter. Kerry called the editing of that video stupid, clumsy, and inappropriate. But it might not be uncommon. The White House now faces criticism over a recently discovered omission from a press-briefing transcript. When a reporter asked White House spokesman Josh Earnest last month whether any senior administration officials had lied about the Iran video, he said, “No.” But that answer was left out of the official transcript.

In agreement. The U.S. Supreme Court handed down two unanimous rulings yesterday, both dealing with the rights of prisoners under very technical aspects of federal law. One decision said prisoners must exhaust administrative procedures for their complaints before going back to court. In the other case, an inmate beaten by another inmate sued because the guards didn’t protect him. He argued that violated his Eighth Amendment protection from cruel and unusual punishment. The government tried to block his claim because it was earlier dismissed, although not on the merits. The justices agreed with the inmate, and his case may now proceed in the lower court.

Always welcome. President Barack Obama marked the beginning of Ramadan with a jab at presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. After paying tribute to American Muslims, Obama said, “I stand firmly with Muslim-American communities in rejection of the voices that seek to divide us or limit our religious freedoms or civil rights.” Trump, who has secured enough delegates to win the GOP presidential nomination, called for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States following terror attacks in Paris and Brussels. Obama’s proclamation said the country will continue to welcome immigrants and refugees, including those who are Muslim.

Final farewell. The last dog known to have searched through the World Trade Center rubble for survivors and then remains died yesterday in Houston. Bretagne, a 16-year-old golden retriever, belonged to the Texas Engineering Extension Service and was a newly certified FEMA Search and Rescue dog when the twin towers fell on 9/11. She and her handler, Denise Corliss, spent 10 days at the site. Bretagne went on to work other natural disasters, finally retiring at age 9. She continued to work as a goodwill ambassador and a reading assistance dog in Cy-Fair, a Houston suburb. She returned to New York twice to visit the National September 11 Memorial. Firefighters and search and rescue workers turned out to bid her a final farewell, lining the sidewalks outside the veterinary clinic where she was euthanized.

WORLD Radio’s Mary Reichard and Steve Coleman contributed to this report.