16/07/2016 BBC Weekend News

Turkey's Prime Minister has said an attempted coup to take over

the country is now over, although there have been reports

Binali Yildirim said more than a hundred and sixty people had

died and nearly three thousand military personnel

Throughout the night, the cities of Ankara and Istanbul

were rocked by gunfire and explosions after rebel soldiers

launched attacks with tanks and helicopters.

It is not yet clear who is behind the coup.

Soldiers surrender, walking away from tanks with their hands held

above their heads. Less than 12 hours since the attempted coup

began, reports now say it is over. Last night, police loyal to

President Erdogan clashed with members of the military. At least

194 people are dead, and more that 1,000 injured.

It began when rebel soldiers closed the main bridges in Istanbul,

effectively severing the link from Europe to Asia. In an address to the

nation, a group from within the ranks of the military seized control

of the state broadcaster, afterwards the presenter said she had been

forced to read the statement held at gun point.

TRANSLATION: Dear Turkish citizens the working system of the Government

has been eroded and the laws and the system that's our Government runs on

have been made invalid. As reports circulated a fighter jets

taking to the skies and tanks firing on Parliament the President took to

video messaging urging supporters to come out on the streets which they

did. Some mounted the tanks grabbing guns from soldiers' hands. This

morning tanks left abandoned in the city centre, the streets quiet now

but evidence of last night's violence is all around. This is the

state of the Turkish Parliament and Presidential buildings in Ankara

today. There is still a sentence sense of chaos but the Prime

Minister insists that the situation is now under control.

TRANSLATION: What happened on the night of 15th July is a black stain

on Turkish democracy. The people who attacked the civilians with the

bombs, tanks, planes and helicopters, of the state, are worse

than the PKK terrorists. Britain's in Turkey are being

advised to stay indoors. The new Foreign Secretary said the UK

remains very Matthew McConaughey certained is about the situation.

They are working very hard as you can imagine, to do the best for the

many Brits who are there, the many people there on holiday, and that I

should follow the travel advice, and we will do our best to update you as

soon as we can. More than 2.5 million Britons visit

Turkey every year, some flights to and from the country are still

cancelled or diverted until the situation becomes clear.

Our correspondent Katy Watson is in Istanbul, and our political

correspondent Chris Mason is outside the Foreign Office.

Katy, events are still unfolding, are they?

Bring us up-to-date with events now. I am in the square in the centre of

Istanbul, which is quiet now, although in the distance there is a

pro Government protest going on, now. As we have heard the Government

said it has got the situation under control, I was on the Bosphorous

Bridge earlier and they were removing the last tanks from last

night. The foreign ministry said they have asked for the ex tradition

of eight soldiers who have landed in a military helicopter in Greece,

according to reports eight soldiers were asking for asylum, that is the

latest so far, but as you said it is still a very fluid situation, the

Government says it has got things under control but we are far from

knowing exactly what has been going on and what will be going on, there

will be an a meeting in Parliament later today, and hopefully we are

get more detail then. Thank you.

Chris Mason is at the Foreign office.

What are they saying there? There is a sense here of the fluidity that

Katie described in Turkey, officials here arriving from very early on

this morning, just after 6am, the new Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson

had been kept abreast of developments until the early hours

and again first thing this morning, I saw him arrive just before 8.00am,

you heard his reaction just a couple of moments ago, the Foreign Office

is also updating minute by minute its travel advice on its website. I

took a look at it a moment or two ago and they are saying that people

who are in Turkey should remain indoor, avoid gathering in public

place, particularly where there are demonstrations and remain vigilant.

You get a sense of the scale of what is happening with British Airways

announcing today they have cancelled all flights in and out of Turkey

today, and they will keep feature flights under review, with the

summer holidays round the corner 2.5 million Brits visit first I can

every year, a cause of real concern for me.

Five people have been arrested in connection with the lorry attack

The group calling itself Islamic State has claimed

the Bastille Day attack was carried out by one of its followers.

A state of emergency has been extended across France

as the country begins three days of national mourning.

Thank you. Well the police have opened one side of the promenade

this morning and the police are behind us, preparing to do the same

on the other side It is a remarkable earth when you consider yesterday

they were carrying out forensic work on 84 victims and the lorry which

finished 100 metres from where I am standing, the authorities say that

is what they wanted to do. The best response is to get on with it as

quickly as possible. The investigation continues as you say,

five people are now in custody, linked to the driver Mohamed

Bouhlel, more on that, our correspondent Tom Burridge. An

apartment in central Nice where there was a lot of police activity

this morning. Officers is arrested three people. And a car was taken

from the scene. A further two people including the killers' ex-wife were

taken in for questioning yesterday. A hug in this city, now has added

meaning. The names of the victims are now emerging. As the horror of

what happened on Nice's beach promenade sinks in. There is a sense

of shock about the way this attack was carried out. About the number

and the age of some of the victims. This time it was Nice, not Paris.

France is left wondering when it will feel safe again.

We met this woman here on Thursday night, with her two young children.

Children. You are frightened for your children? Of course, I lost my

daughter, I was running and she left my hand. I was so scared.

The night is finished but I still see the pictures in my face. I don't

know... The weapon on Thursday night, a lorry. The driver

deliberately killing those in his path. The man behind the wheel was

Mohamed Bouhlel, a French Tunisian who lived in Nice, previously known

to the police for petty crimes, but not on the radar as a possible

terrorist. The so-called Islamic State group

have claimed responsibility for the attack. But they haven't produced

any evidence of the link between him and them.

But for now, tourists and locals alike feel disbelief, across France

there is growing frustration, that the authorities appear unable to

prevent senseless killing, on the streets again.

This is a terrorist acts by anyone deefs in addition but it becomes

more in the eyes of the French people, if there is a link with

so-called Islamic State. He wasn't known to the intelligence agencies

but there were documents and a mobile phone found in the cab of the

truck which form part of the investigation, and he was known to

police for theft and for violence against a fellow delivery driver

earlier this year, also there is that link to Tunisia, his parents

are from a place near to the resort city of Sousse where 30 Britons were

killed over a year ago on the beach there. So they will look at all of

that, and of course we know that Islamic State are claiming

responsibility, we also know they have asked their followers to carry

out things like this, we have to keep an open mind this could just be

a very angry suicidal, lonely individual, who wanted to kill as

many people as he could when he died himself.

You can see more on all of today's stories on the BBC News Channel.

The next news on BBC One is at 17.45.