escalation in the middle east, president biden vowing to

respond to a deadly attack on u.s. troops at a out post in jordan. a growing call for retaliation this morning. the head of homeland security in the hot seat. republicans, their articles of impeachment, the secretary alejandro mayorkas over the border crisis. we're live with the looming joe shown and the bipartisan deal that could reshape the fighting. working overnight a choice real estate giant crumbles, the court ordering ever grand to liquidate. we have more on why it could have major implications for china's economy. calling in the wrangling brothers, the wild roundup on an indiana highway after circus animals escape a semi truck fire. it is viva las vegas for the chiefs and 49ers. we have the road to super bowl lviii. it is monday, january 29th. erlz starts now. good to be with you. i'm frances rivera.

we begin with breaking news. another major escalation in the middle east, service members were killed in a drone strike on their base in northeast jordan. more than 30 were injured. the biden administration is blaming iran-backed militias for the attack and promises a response. for the latest, let's go to claudia, what do we know about what happened? >> reporter: good morning, frances. the u.s. central command in a statement said the attack happened at a logistics support military base in the north of jordan, close to the border with syria, where about 350 u.s. troops are stationed, and where among the tasks they provide support to the coalitiont isis. now two u.s. officials told nbc news that this drone laden with explosives landed very near to a shelter where the soldiers were sleeping killing three and injuring at least 34 more. right after the attack, president biden paid tribute to the fallen soldiers. let's take a listen to what he

said. >> last night, in the middle east, we lost three brave souls in an attack on one of our bases, and i ask for a moment of silence for all three of those fallen soldiers. >> reporter: in the statement, the president blamed radical militants operating in syria and iraq backed by iran. and in another statement, the umbrella group that represents these militants called the islamic resistance of iraq said that they did carry out four attacks alongside, attacks against four targets, alongside the lebanon syria, the jordan syrian border, but it is not clear whether one of those attacks led to the death of those american soldiers. now the president also said that it vows to hold as responsible, accountable, in the manner and the time of choosing of the united states, but too, u.s. lawmakers are pressing the

president to target immediately iran for its role in backing these militants, among them is lindsey graham who on his x account said hit iran now, hit it hard. whatever the u.s. response, it is a dangerous escalation of the situation in the middle east because as was mentioned this is the first time that u.s. soldiers actually lose their lives and are killed in the region, since the start of the war between israel and hamas. frances? >> we'll wait for more information about those three service members. claudio, thank you. secretary lloyd austin returns to the pentagon today, the first time back in near lay month after he had emergency surgery over prostate cancer treatment on january 1st. austin is expected to host nato secretary stolenberg for a bilateral meeting today. the hospitalization caused controversy with some lawmakers calling for his resignation.

the homeland security secretary's job is in jeopardy, articles of impeachment are moving forward against secretary alejandro mayorkas, the lawmakers are accusing mayorkas of failing to manage the situation at the southern border. nbc's brie jackson joins us right now from dc. good morning. what is next in the impeachment fight. >> reporter: the house homeland security committee is expected to consider these articles of impeachment tuesday and once approved by the committee, the next step would be a floor vote in the house. the articles accuse mayorkas of not prioritizing detention at the border, and for making false statements to congress that the border is secure. texas congressman michael mccall accused mayorkas of a dereliction of duty. >> i call him the architect of destruction. 8 million encounters, 300 on the terror watch list, 200million people dead now, thanks to fentanyl poisoning that this one man is responsible for. think that is a dereliction of duty. breach of the public trust.

it is sufficient to impeach. >> reporter: and the dhs is calling the accusations baseless, saying republicans ignored the facts, legal scholars, experts and even the constitution itself. the top democrat on the homeland security security, congressman bennie thompson, says what is glaringly missing is any real charge of even a shred of evidence of high crimes or misdemeanors. a bipartisan deal in the senate that mayorkas helped negotiate is now finalized, but not yet released. the bill would give president biden the authority to shut down the border if it is overwhelmed. president biden says it has given that authority, he would use it as soon as the bill was signed into law. but even if the bill passes the senate, house speaker mike johnson has warned that it may be dead on arrival in the house. frances? >> brie jackson for us, thank you. republican presidential hopeful nikki haley has revealed that her house in south carolina was the target of a swatting

incident around a month ago. while haley was not at home at the time, her elderly parents were present, when armed police responded to a prank call about an emergency at the property. >> the last thing you want is to see multiple law enforcement officials with guns drawn, pointing at my parents, and thinking that something happened. it is an awful situation. >> she is just the latest politician to fall prey to the dangerous prank. georgia congressman marjorie taylor green and florida senator rick scott have also been targeted. jurors who found alex murdaugh guilty of killing his wife and son are set to testify. murdaugh's lawyers accuse the county clerk of tampering with the jury during the murder trial. one juror was questioned separately friday due to a scheduling conflict. denied tampering in an affidavit, is expected to take the stand later in the day. the outcome of the hearing could determine if murdaugh is granted

a retrial. police rescued circus animals from a burning semi truck in grant county indiana this weekend. jesse kirsch has the story. >> reporter: when the semi went up in flames, police say they found the driver safely outside the truck. but there were several more lives trapped inside the trailer along an indiana highway. police say the semi was carrying tent circus animals, five zebras, camels and a miniature horse, suddenly standing on the side of an interstate posing for pictures. >> that is definitely a very unique situation to have to deal with, not only with the semi fire or the vehicle fire, but yes, with those types of animals in the state of indiana. >> reporter: police believe an equipment failure sparked the blaze. it was extinguished, according to authorities, who say two first responders referred treatment for smoke inhalation at the hospital before being released. >> it is awesome to see that team work that they get together, and they do their job, and you know, they will go inside of a trailer that has

smoke that's filling up, because the cab is completely engulfed in flame flames. >> one responding agency writing on facebook, our public safety professionals of all stripes worked together to get over the hump on this job. >> loading up now. >> reporter: traffic is moving again. after that group of animals from the circus still put on a show. jesse kirsch, nbc news. a winter storm is moving through new england this morning, creating a slippery mute for many. in boston, a mix of rain, sleet, ice, and snow, started falling sunday. the storm is expected to bring anywhere from two to eight inches of snow with a greater mulgs of heavy wet snow expected in higher elevations. let's bring in nbc meteorologist michelle grossman tracking record highs on the way. hi, michelle. >> hi there. we're looking at weather in the west and plains and appalachians and into the great lakes, a quick clipper system will move through. and we will see an inch. >> there the big story is the warm weather today, as we're

looking at temperatures soaring well above normal. we will keep the warm temperatures not only today but tomorrow and throughout most of this workweek, look at the 70s in los angeles, and eight degrees above normal for this time of the year, and near 80 degrees, in phoenix, and albuquerque looking at 57, and wichita, 64 degrees. nearly 20 degrees above normal for this time of the year. that spring feeling will be in place again tomorrow. 70s in las vegas, and 10 degrees above average, tucson, near 80 degrees, tomorrow, and 60s in wichita fall, little rock and also huntsville and the warm weather in place on wednesday, close to records once again, i think we'll break nearly two dozen records today, we will keep a close eye on that. otherwise on wednesday, we are looking at a new western storm moving in, that will bring some rain and mountain snow and then as we near friday, we will see the widespread showers throughout the inter mountain west and southwest and the west coast as well, where we will continue to see some rain anf t.

dallas, 68. 66 in houston. frances, that's your monday forecast. >> thank you, michelle. it all came down to the final four on nfl championship sunday. the underdog chiefs showed no fear on the road against the top-seeded ravens. baltimore had few answers for patrick mahomes and travis kelsey in the first half but nbc front-runner lamar jackson managed to get his team in scoring position. unfortunately, the disaster struck for the purple birds in the red zone. >> second and 8, from the nine. jackson to flowers. the ball came loose. recovered by kansas city. >> the ravens never recovered from that fumble. a late interception by jackson all but sealed the game for kc

and the defending champs advance to their fourth super bowl appearance in five seasons. later that night, it looked like an historic rout in santa clara, the detroit lions had a 17-point lead in the nfc championship against the top seeded 49ers. but after the offense stalled in the second half, this incredible catch by brandon sparked a run of 24 unanswered point force san francisco and the looints magical playoff run comes to an end, one game short of the super bowl. so the niners will travel to vegas for their own chance at redemption in a rematch of super bowl liv. erlz is back in a moment for a bombshell for china's economy. and the minion family has a new addition in a first look at he did dese pickable me 46789 fiber gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down

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the debt crisis in the country. we have joined by arabile gumede with more. this could have a major impact on china's economy. >> reporter: it certainly could. this is a massive property situation with ever grand the largest of the property developers in china, as well, for quite some time, and that has of course completely faded, but it is late and in a high court in hong kong ruling indeed it would have to liquidate its services, the volatile trading and the stock dumped off 20%, and hatting trade out of hong kong. really, they tried to reach an 11th hour restructuring deal as well. that didn't come to fruition either. let's remember that this is a property developer which defaulted in 2021 and tried to find a restructuring program in march last year. so the debt situation has been

massive. the chinese authorities even last week tried to stimulate that economy by adding a bit more stimulus into the economy to try and aid the debt that was sitting with a lot of the entities in the property sector. fortunately not helping china evergrande, it may have reached the end then for the company. on the other side though, interesting to note as well, some other news that has certainly come up, the biden administration is actually expected to award billions of dollars worth of subsidies to top chip makers as well as chip suppliers, and the likes of intel, taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company, or better known as tsmc, the largest chip manufacturer in the world of course, all of that is set to come out in the next few weeks out of the united states, and a lot more details for that will be quite significant to the growth of that sector within the united states. frances? >> okay, thank you for the breakdown. still to come, a new box office champ tells mean girls you can't sit with us. and grammy history from a

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theaters and my family can't wait. the reigning box office -- >> you're telling me one man did this. the only thing you know is he is a beekeeper. >> a beekeeper beekeeper? that's not good. >> it is certainly a production. the beekeeper, beats mean girls from the top spot in the box office of the two films grossed from $150,000 each other on a sleepy weekend that saw no new wide releases. wonka, starring timothee chalamet took third place for the third consecutive weekend. now to the grammy awards first, the recording academy announced sunday that legendary singer and song writer joni mitchell will perform at next weekend's ceremony for the first time in her year. the 80-year-old is nominated at this year's awards for best folk album, a live recording in the first performance in two decades. mitchell has already taken nine grammys including a lifetime achievement award in 2002, thee will take the stage next sunday.

when we come back, scary mome force passengers on an eranamic airlines flight to hawaii. and a taylor swift fan making history for knowing her songs "all too well." there may be one. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ feeling sluggish or weighed down? ♪♪ could be a sign that your digestive system isn't at its best. but a little metamucil everyday can help. metamucil's psyllium fiber gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down... so you can lighten every day the metamucil way. (bill) we made a promise to our boy blue that we would make the healthiest foods possible... ...with the finest natural ingredients and real meat first. and that's our promise to you and your dog or cat.

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space-x. and setting guinness world record. this is what he did. identifying 34 taylor swift songs in all in less than a minute. rounding it out. the 20-year-old said he studied for 13 weeks and an important number for any twist fan before going for the record. he also holds the title for most justin bieber songs and also he can identify animal sounds in just one minute, too. "early today" will be right back. inez, let me ask you, you're using head and shoulders, right? only when i see flakes. then i switch back to my regular shampoo. you should use it every wash, otherwise the flakes will come back. tiny troy: he's right, you know. is that tiny troy? the ingredients in head and shoulders keep the microbes that cause flakes at bay. microbes, really? they're always on your scalp... little rascals... but good news, there's no itchiness, dryness or flakes down here! i love tiny troy. and his tiny gorgeous hair. he's the best. - make every wash count! - little help please. not flossing well? then add the whoa!

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heart-warming story. >> high five. that's a good one. >> there you go. >> at planet rock fitness in ann arbor, michigan. >> keep going. almost halfway. >> these great kids are reaching new heights. >> are you ready to go? >>while building strength, courage and community. >> yes. >> let's go. >> and that's life changing, because the children here are either living with or recovering from cancer. >> all right, do it again, buddy. a little higher than the black triangle. >> it is a free program called rock cancer, dreamed up by pediatric oncology dr. karl cashman from the university of michigan. >> what is it about rock climbing that is imaginic. >> the whole body, arms and legs together. and for the kids not having done this before, it was a mental leap. >> it was a project created with his patient vera jane seven years ago to build strength following her grueling

treatments for kidney cancer. this is vera today. now, 17, and cancer free, she's encouraging other young warriors. >> it sounds like the rock climbing is giving people the strength to keep battling that cancer. it is something distracting. it is something to feel normal. >> it's a good starting point just to get used to getting up the wall. >> it is also a source of support for parents like rebecca hodge. >> was that hard or too easy? >> too easy. >> too easy. wow. >> for a few precious hours each month her son zac gets to simply be a kid again. >> i mean the thing doesn't own it. he owns the thing. and the nicest thing for me, i get a sense of normalcy back. >> a place where joy and confidence are reached. >> you got it. >> one step at a time. >> good job, dude. was that fun? >> yes. >> nice. >> i think it is important to remind people in this program that you're not alone, and that i think that is the most important part. >> you're not alone.

>> exactly. >> confidence clim those kids, . thanks to kate for that story. all right, we're coming up on the "today" show, so could the mystery of amelia earhart's disappearance finally be solved? almost 90 years later, a sonar image may hold a crucial clue into cracking the case. we'll see that. and al roker has a look at what else is ahead. >> this morning, on the third hour of today, actor jesse l. martin live in studio 1-a and help plan the next dream vacation without breaking the bank. and a tar today workout to start your week off right. all that and more coming up this all that and more coming up this morning on the ♪ ♪ ♪

breaking news. the first american combat deaths in the middle east since the war in g