Father accused of kidnapping his two children and bringing them to Tunisia says he won’t return his children to the U.S. “‘I did not have anbody to tell me you are not supposed to take the kids outside the country.'” [NBC4]

D.C. police officer who allegedly threatened to shoot first lady Michelle Obama is now on desk duty as his own department and the Secret Service investigate the case. “Lanier confirmed that there are two investigations into the matter – one conducted by MPD and another by the Secret Service. If a threat was made, it will be treated as a criminal matter, Lanier says. If it’s just a joke, then it’s conduct unbecoming of an officer, she said.” [WJLA]

A “solar storm” is heading toward Earth but probably won’t be too disruptive. “The coronal mass ejection on Thursday, caused by the release of excess solar energy, is classified as an X1.4 event. That means the storm is probably too weak to affect satellites used for cell phone communication, but communication using shorter wavelengths, such as radio, may be affected, said John Raymond, a physicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.” [ABC News]

Kojo Nnamdi regrets his remarks about Mayor Vincent Gray. “I now regret those words, as prophetic as they appear. I still think that Gray is a decent and thoughtful man, but he stands at the center of a political culture that is corrupt and broken.” [The Post]

Maryland man reunites with his tortoise. “The tortoise, Chester, disappeared from Bill Athey’s property last week and ended up in a Pennsylvania wildlife preserve.” [Frederick News Post]

>> Bastille Day, all-you-can-eat oysters, roller girls and more in our Weekend Picks round up.