the emotional debate over the controversial mosque near ground zero. today, both sides took to the streets. bad eggs -- over half a billion already recalled. could there be more? tonight, new details about the companies involved. the heist -- a van gogh is gone, snatched from a museum in cairo, how does someone walk away with a masterpiece? it's not the first time. and new heights -- three veterans, three wars, one and new heights -- three veterans, three wars, one enormous challenge. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

good evening, everyone, just a week after president obama's comments ratcheted up the debate over a proposed islamic center and mosque near ground zero, emotions on both sides spilled out in demonstrations on the streets of new york today. what began weeks ago as a mostly local controversy has rapidly built in a heated national conversation over tolerance and freedom. underscored by the still-open wounds of 9/11. nbc's michelle franzen was there today as demonstrators gathered in the shadow of the world trade center site and joins us from lower manhattan with more. >> the proposed mosque site is across the street here on park place and two blocks away from the site where the twin towers once stood. this issue has divided new yorkers in a way that they have not experienced in the years since 9/11. now even president obama has weighed in, turning this into a political national debate. >> no mosque, not here, not now,

not ever! >> the debate over the proposed building of an islamic mosque and center near the site of the 9/11 attacks resonated from the streets of lower manhattan to washington, d.c. >> what is your view about whether it should be built? >> well ultimately that's going to be decided by the people of new york. >> near ground zero, two duelling rallies just blocks apart. on one side, the coalition to honor ground zero, a mix of first responders, construction workers and 9/11 families who say the proposed site is too close to ground zero. and insensitive to families still grieving and recovering. >> there are many people that were affected by 9/11 that who have tried to move forward with their lives and tried to find some peace and love and happiness in their life. and this is bringing everything back to them. and it's very unfair. >> but the woman who organized the rally said it has more to do with the man behind the proposed center.

and fears his religious beliefs are not moderate. >> we're concerned that he may be putting a symbol of triumph, a symbol of having vanquished america in the 9/11 attacks and a symbol of power right here at ground zero. we don't want it. >> two blocks away, interfaith leaders and students and various civil rights organizations say they are fighting for religious freedom. >> it absolutely is about religious freedom. it's about humanity. it's about live and let live. and we weren't attacked by the nation of islam, there is no such thing. >> a man in the middle east is on a state department's sponsored outreach tour, designed to highlight religious freedom in america. it's his fourth trip since 2007. his wife said the plans to build the mosque are still on track, but at the same time they're not opposed to starting a dialogue to those who oppose the project.

>> this is an opportunity for us to really turn this around and make this into something very, very positive. >> and finding common ground will continue to be a challenge. new york state governor, david paterson, has offered to sit down with mosque leaders in hopes of finding a new location for the mosque. so far, lester, mosque leaders are not willing to budge. >> we want to turn now to an incredible story unfolding now in chile. there is late word 33 miners trapped deep underground for 17 days have managed to make contact with rescuers and all appear to be alive. nbc's tom llamas is following developments. >> they're saying and they're calling it el milagro. the miracle. 2200 feet beneath the earth's surface, 33 miners somehow survived. chile's president, pinera held the evidence in his hand, a note from the miners which said all 33 of us are fine.

it was attached to a probe. it was sent down see if anyone was alive. and one miner sent a personal note to his wife. it happened about 500 miles north of chile's capital, santiago. the excitement and cheers are being measured, because it will take three to four months to get the miners out. they'll be sending down food, water and oxygen and camera equipment. so rescuers can see the condition of the miners. it's been a long two weeks for the families, it's going to be an even longer fewer months, but at least now they have hope. >> thank you. tonight federal investigators are still trying to pinpoint the cause of a salmonella outbreak that's resulted in the record recall of a half billion eggs. it's sickened more than 1300 people so far. and as our lee cowan reports, all of that is changing the way a lot of americans eat and shop. >> the incredible edible egg -- as the marketing jingle once went, is for now, some fear,

incredibly dangerous. with half a billion eggs shipped across 22 states now suspected of being tainted with salmonella, nationwide warnings continue for consumers to be vigilant. >> no soft-boiled eggs, no over easy fried, no soft scrambled. if you're going to eat the eggs, cook them and almost cook them again. >> experts for now say the safest bet is to know your egg supplier. >> you have a way to find local eggs, that's a great way. >> at this farmer's market, the questions are everywhere and not about costs. >> i don't think that you can put a price on good health. >> business at this organic egg stand is up 20%. >> we've already ordered more eggs for next week. >> the recalled eggs were linked to two major egg producers in iowa, packaged as long ago as april. many have been cooked and eaten already, which critics say highlights the problem of

issuing recalls too late. >> it's another example of the fact that we still have a 19th century food safety system. >> currently investigators in the u.s. are largely left to chase down food borne illnesses after the fact. austin jack decoster, the egg producer linked to the outbreak has been cited by food investigators before. still what the fda needs is the funding and resources to institute preventive measures first. >> they don't know what's going on on the farms. it takes a long time to investigate. >> the fda can't even mandate a recall at this point. legislation has been pending for almost a year that would grant the fda more powers. but it's scheduled for a vote next month. united egg producers, who represents the industry says that both egg companies are going to extremes to track down the tainted eggs. in the meantime -- >> we have bacon, sausage. >> customers will have to watch and wait for the sunny side of eggs to return.

lee cowan, nbc news, los angeles. >> the next time you swipe your credit card, new rules will be in effect. they started today and are designed to protect you from what some say are abusive practices. by credit card issuers. cnbc's sharon epperson is here with a rundown of the changes. >> the rules that the credit card companies must now follow are going to result in two big changes for consumers. first, interest rates, there will be no more secrets about why your credit card rate has gone up. if your credit card company raises the annual percentage rate it has to tell you why. the card company has to re-evaluate the increase every six months. and there's another big change that has to do with penalty fees. late payment fees cannot be more than $25 in most cases. plus a penalty fee can no longer be higher than your monthly minimum payment. and no more inactivity fees, meaning you can't be charged for not using a credit card. and finally, credit card companies can no longer charge double penalties.

meaning you won't have to pay fees twice if you're late paying your bill and exceed your credit limit. and there's another bonus, too, also taking effect, new rules for gift cards. starting now, they're going to be good for five years, if you get a gift card that says it's going to expire in less than five years, you can request a replacement gift card for free. another big bonus, back to you. >> sharon epperson from cnbc, thank you. we turn to afghanistan and iraq, more grim news about deadly attacks on u.s. forces in both countries. nbc's tom aspell has the latest from kabul. >> only days after american combat forces withdrew from iraq, a u.s. soldier has been killed in a rocket attack in iraq's southern province of basra. his death brings the total of american service personnel killed in iraq to at least 4,416. since the war there began in 2003. 50,000 u.s. troops will remain in iraq, but their commander said this morning it's unlikely

they'll resume combat duties unless the iraqi government forces collapse. >> we don't see that happening. they've been doing so well for so long, now that we really believe we're beyond that point. >> in afghanistan, it was a deadly weekend. six u.s. soldiers were killed fighting taliban insurgents in the east and south of the country. 28 americans have been killed this month. 66 last month. afghan president, hamid karzai said this morning he believed the war can still be won. >> we have to win. but we in order for us to do that we must end the business as usual and we must begin to reexamine whether we're doing everything correctly. >> and the u.s. commander here, general david petraeus, says he has the resources he needs. >> by the end of august of course we will have nearly tripled the number of u.s. forces on the ground. we've expanded the non-u.s. nato

forces, tripled the number of civilians, increased the funding to enable 100,000 more national afghan forces. >> in addition to the troops, u.s. forces can expect more equipment, much of which will come from iraq now that the combat troops have left. including m-rap armored vehicles, which offer good protection against roadside bombs. by the end of september, the military here expects to have the personnel and material it needs for a major push against the taliban in southern afghanistan. tom aspell, nbc news, kabul. we learn today, president obama is planning a major address on iraq soon after he returns to washington. our mike vicara joins us from martha's vineyard, where the first family are vacationing. >> the white house announced this morning that the president give a major address next week after he returns here from martha's vineyard on iraq. remember, the dramatic pictures last week as u.s. combat troops traveled south to iraq and over

the kuwaiti border. those were the last u.s. combat troops in iraq. the president was largely silent at the time, but his speech next week will be something of a balancing act. he wants to draw attention to the fact that he's fulfilling his pledge to have the troops out by august 31st. but he doesn't want to hang the "mission accomplished" sign as his predecessor did prematurely during the term of george w. bush. and meantime, the president continues on here. they said it was going to be some down time for the president to recharge his batteries and they're certainly serious about that we've seen little of the first family after the first few days here. the press did manage to get in a round of golf this morning before the wind and the rain set in. lester? >> mike vicara tonight, thank you. when "nightly news" continues this sunday, the search is on for a $50 million van gogh painting and the thief who is snatched it from a museum in cairo. and later, the inspiring story of three veterans from three wars.

they beat the odds to scale one of the world's highest mountains.

the humanitarian crisis in pakistan keeps getting worse. flooding hit new areas in southern pakistan today, since late july, flooding from torrential rains ha left about 20% of the country under water. at least 1500 people have been killed, and more than six million are homeless. meantime, the world has now pledged more than $800 million in aid. severe flooding from heavy rains has also hit along the china/north korea borders. state news agencies in those countries report a quarter of a million people have evacuated, most in china. so far, fourth deaths are reported. a worldwide search is on tonight for a van gogh

masterpiece. the painting was stolen from a museum in cairo. as we reported here last night, investigators at first reported it had been found. today, they say it's still missing. as nbc's tazin ahmed reports, it's a string of high-profile heists. >> it's a masterpiece worth over $50 million. stolen for the second time from the same museum. >> they stood on a couch, literally. and they sliced the painting, the van gogh poppies right out of the frame. >> the alarms didn't go off and only seven of the 43 security cameras were working. it's the latest in a string of high-profile art heists, stretching back two years. in zurich, about $80 million snatched. a cezanne, van gogh, and degas. more recently, in the south of france, two heists a week apart. and this theft in paris, hundreds of millions of dollars

worth of art stolen, including a picasso, a matisse. in that case, as well as in egypt, security was lax. >> the age of the buildings, the amount of the material that is in them, it doesn't lend itself to good security. and that's what we're seeing is a lack of security. >> former fbi agent bob whitman spent decades working under cover as an art dealer to recover stolen art. seen here in this copenhagen sting, retrieving a rembrandt from iraqi thieves. he says most of his clients are not like "the thomas crowne affair" more often they're crimes of opportunity. but can thieves really turn art into hard cash? >> it's worldwide, it's famous, it's known all over the world. and because of the speed of communication? the world knows within hours that the painting is missing. >> this weekend's blunders left egyptian officials at a loss. claiming they had found the van gogh only to backtrack hours later.

the hunt to recover it is on. nbc news, london. >> there's a new honor to report tonight for an american treasure, betty white was among the winners at this year's creative arts emmy awards ceremony last night in los angeles. she was honored for her acclaimed hosting job on "saturday night live" last may and also got blockbuster ratings, the prime emmy awards will be presented live on nbc next sunday night. when we return, brian williams reflects on reporting from new orleans in the first terrible days immediately after hurricane katrina hit five years ago. i know who works differently than many other allergy medications. hoo? omnaris. [ men ] omnaris -- to the nose! [ man ] did you know nasal symptoms like congestion can be caused by allergic inflammation? omnaris relieves your symptoms by fighting inflammation. side effects may include headache, nosebleed, and sore throat. [ inhales deeply ] i told my allergy symptoms to take a hike.

omnaris. ask your doctor. battling nasal allergy symptoms? omnaris combats the cause. get omnaris for $11 at omnaris.com. [ birds chirping ] [ water runs ] [ female announcer ] new chef boyardee whole grain beefaroni. the taste kids love. [ whispering ] now with whole grain pasta. shh.

many of you will be closely which formed late icedrmth lates e ternoon far out in the atlantic. forecasters say it could strengthen into a hurricane by ldesday, but they say it's too early to tell whether it will hit land. a week from today will mark

five years since hurricane katrina slammed ashore near the louisiana/mississippi border as a monster category four storm, with 125-mile-per-hour winds. new orleans took a direct hit, flooding about 85% of the city. tonight, brian williams will host a special "dateline" broadcast. his own reflections immediately after returning from new orleans where he reported on those first chaotic days after katrina hit. >> the point of katrina is that because of the natural disaster, one, and because of the government response or lack of it, two, human behavior degraded. already thousands of people roam the streets in a mass migration looking for food. water, help or just a way out. >> all right, now. >> if you want to be rescued, go to the superdome. all of a sudden now they're telling us, go to the bridge. we have very few resources, what are we supposed to do.

>> i remember seeing wild eyes that day. desperation, the inability to feed yourself or your family. the common-sense switch gets clicked off, and we don't become recognizable to ourselves or our families any more. the government couldn't tell us that things were okay. we were there, standing next to the things that were not okay. >> do we have regular insulin? >> remember bodily functions all human hygiene came to an end. babies reusing diapers. anything you can think of that you do over the course of a day, bodily, it was being done where you sat or stood. take a moment and picture that. take a moment and figure out where you're going to find food without refrigeration and if you don't have a source of food.

>> take a moment and think how desperate you would feel -- >> look how hot he is, he's not waking up very easy. i am not just, this is not about low-income, it's not about rich people, poor people, it's about people. >> we need help, sir, we need help. >> i couldn't believe that people were starving and going without water in the united states for lack of an air drop. there was absolutely nothing that would lead you to believe this was the united states. it didn't feel like we were home. >> brian's "dateline" special, "hurricane katrina, the first five days" airs tonight at 7:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m. central here on nbc. and starting thursday, brian

will report live if new orleans as nbc news presents special coverage of hurricane katrina, five years later. still ahead here tonight, three brave soldiers and how they beat the odds to conquer one of the world's highest peaks. you exercise and eat right, but your blood sugar may still be high, and you need extra help. ask your doctor about onglyza, a once daily medicine used with diet and exercise to control high blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. adding onglyza to your current oral medicine may help reduce after meal blood sugar spikes and may help reduce high morning blood sugar. [ male announcer ] onglyza should not be used to treat type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. tell your doctor if you have a history or risk of diabetic ketoacidosis. onglyza has not been studied with insulin. using onglyza with medicines such as sulfonylureas may cause low blood sugar. some symptoms of low blood sugar are shaking, sweating and rapid heartbeat. call your doctor if you have an allergic reaction like rash,

hives or swelling of the face, mouth or throat. ask your doctor if you also take a tzd as swelling in the hands, feet or ankles may worsen. blood tests will check for kidney problems. you may need a lower dose of onglyza if your kidneys are not working well or if you take certain medicines. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about adding onglyza. extra help. extra control. you may be eligible to pay $10 a month with the onglyza value card program. [ male announcer ] an everyday moment can turn romantic anytime. and when it does, men with erectile dysfunction can be more confident in their ability to be ready with cialis for daily use. cialis for daily use is a clinically proven low-dose tablet you take every day, so you can be ready anytime the moment's right. ♪ tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications, and ask if you're healthy enough for sexual activity.

don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. [ man ] don't drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache, or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, stop taking cialis and call your doctor right away. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor if cialis for daily use is right for you. for a 30-tablet free trial offer, go to cialis.com.

finally tonight, three veterans from three different wars. each an amputee, with one good leg between them. and despite losing their legs in vietnam, iraq and afghanistan, they just finished scaling one of the world's highest mountains, mount kilimanjaro in tanzania. it's an inspiring story they recounted in their own words morning on "today." >> when i woke up in the hospital bed, wired shut with both of my legs amputated, i didn't know where things were going to go when i woke up. i didn't know an amputee until i became an amputee, so through programs i was able to get that freedom back and a lot of people will attest to that. i knew it was attainable. i knew with the right planning and preparation, we could make it to the top. >> as an amputee, you have unique challenges. not having ankles for instance, not having a knee in neil and kurt's case, the amount of strain and torque that you put on your residual limb is just brutal.

you couple it with several hours a day by the time you make it to the top, you're in bad shape. >> the artificial leg broke up, the battery died. i had to switch to a mechanical leg. and it did fall off a number of times. all the walking, the stump shrank. we had quite a few challenges in that regard. we did a lot of careful preparation that helped us get through and get to the bottom and the top. >> if i had to go back to five-plus years ago in the hospital bed, i never would have imagined myself walking again, let alone climbing-month kilimanjaro, so to look back at that time, there's been so many opportunities for me to prove to myself that i could continue to be the person i was before my injury. >> three american heroes savoring a new high point in their lives. that's "nbc nightly news" for this sunday. stay tuned for brine williams' "dateline" special. followed by brett favre and the minnesota vikings taking on the san francisc