on our friday night broadcast, the threat to the u.s. capitol and the sting operation that may have stopped a suicide bomber. inside syria. an extraordinary view of the violence. is this all-out civil war and when does it end? your privacy. is google tracking your every move even when you tell them not to? also, what happens to all that information? early warnings. seeing signs of autism as young as 6 months, potentially ground-breaking new research and what it means for parents. making a difference for kids every step of the way. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

good evening. the fbi is claiming tonight it has stopped a lone wolf terrorist attack on u.s. soil as part of a sting operation set up by the government. in any kind of a sting where the government trails a suspect then swoops in and arrests him before the crime, we never get to find out what would have happened in the end. that is exactly the case tonight in our nation's capital where the fbi has arrested a man in such a sting operation, who they say intended to go to the u.s. capitol building and blow himself up. it's where we begin tonight with the reporting of our justice correspondent pete williams. pete, good evening. >> reporter: federal agents say what makes this sting operation different is that the man they arrested was willing to carry out a suicide attack wearing a bomb, with one of his targets possibly the capitol visitor center right behind me. they say he never actually had any explosives. police and fbi agents combed through the home of a 29-year-old man originally from

morocco in the washington suburb of alexandria, virginia. he's accused of planning to wear a suicide vest and set it off at the u.s. capitol. investigators say he told them he hoped to kill at least 30 people. officials say fbi agents had him under close surveillance sce early december. first he told them he wanted to attack jewish synagogues in the area or a restaurant or u.s. military facilities. then he decided his target would be the capitol building, perhaps its new underground visitors center likely to be crowded with tourists on a week day afternoon. or u.s. senate office building. >> in previous cases, we've seen suspects who wanted to detonate a device, but do it from a distance. in khalifi's case, he wanted to be a martyr. >> reporter: a month ago they went to a quarry in west virginia and set off explosives in a practice run. around noon today in a parking garage near the capitol, the fbi says the undercover agents gave

him a vest loaded with way what he thought were explosives and a gun which turned out to be inoperable. he was arrested as he walked toward the capitol. >> apparently his intention was to shoot capitol police outside the capitol and at the entrance, then go in and set off the vest. there are a large number of tourists there today. >> reporter: the fbi says it first became interested in el khalifi about a year ago after receiving a tip. it's impossible to know if he could pull it off on his own, but disturbing how far he was willing to go. >> this kind of single person, so-called aspirational terrorist event is what they've been worried about for years. i guess it's a matter of staying ahead of them. >> reporter: right. of course, what they say is that in cases like this, it's people who will go beyond merely making statements. yes, they became interested when

he was meeting with other people talking about this. they say it's the series of steps he kept taking, escalating every step of the way how far he was willing to go that made them decide now was the time to make the arrest. >> pete williams from the capitol and the story he's been reporting on all day. thanks. across at the pentagon, defense officials are telling jim miklazewski that, quote, a good number of unmanned u.s. drones are currently operating in the skies over and around syria, monitoring the syrian military's attacks against opposition forces and in many cases innocent civilians. these officials emphasize this surveillance is not in preparation for any kind of u.s. military intervention, but the obama administration hopes to use what it learns to rally international pressure against the syrian regime. tonight we have an extraordinary look inside syria from the ground level. we get it from nbc's bill neely. >> reporter: syria says this isn't a civil war. well, it certainly looks like

one as rebel troops battle regular soldiers more and more. syria's army is swamping half a dozen towns and cities. this is homs. bombarded with mortars for a 13th straight day. homs is collapsing, hundreds dead. the u.n. on a road to nowhere. passing resolutions but powerless to stop this destruction. syria's third city looking every inch a war zone. it's spreading. more clashes in the southern city of dara, where army tanks rumble through the streets. something syria's army categorically denied just yesterday. not tanks? no tanks, the general told me. we will not use them. and we will win. some aren't so sure. these men are being ordered to fire on their own people.

many have deserted. some of their men are struggling to survive. shot by rebels, they cling to life in a military hospital. there are many deserters in this new brigade of rebels. the latest to join the free syrian army. this war is beginning to look like iraq with roadside bombs targeting tanks. but there is a price to pay for the games of the revolution. these young men, the latest to be arrested by troops in damascus. in the neighborhood where we filmed them protesting just four days ago. do you feel that you are winning this battle? that this uprising is working? >> 100% we will go. >> reporter: this battle now in its 12th month is a civil war by any standards.

and it's deepening. bill neely, nbc news, damascus. we received word from syria last night one of the clearest, bravest and most prominent voices in journalism is gone. anthony shadid, the two-time pulitzer winner from "the new york times" died from an apparent asthma attack in syria. he was only 43. shadid was last in the news when he and his colleagues were captured and abused by forces loyal to gadhafi in libya. there he was last week back in the fight in syria explaining what he saw to his readers back home in the u.s. and around the world. he wrote beautifully and with great clarity about what might be the most complex region on earth. his colleagues lined up today to say he was the best and the bravest, and the most humble among all of them. among his friends and colleagues our own chief foreign correspondent richard engel, who has written a personal remembrance that we commend to your attention.

we put it on our website tonight. now we turn to domestic politics this evening. congress moved with remarkable speed today to pass the payroll tax cut extension through the end of the year. the bill passed today extends unemployment benefits, heads off a cut in doctors' medicare fees. republicans agreed to go along with the extension without offsetting budget cuts. today's action will add about $100 billion to the federal deficit. it goes on to the president for his signature. we have news from the campaign trail. they have a big mess in maine. it was the scene of the last caucus just this past saturday. mitt romney won, ron paul was second. were those results really the results? not unlike iowa, it seems there might have been misplaced votes and the gop may have another primary embarrassment on its hands. the state party chairman in maine says some precinct results may have gone to his e-mail spam folder and he may have missed

them. we learn today newt gingrich is getting more help. billionaire sheldon adelson is giving the super pac $10 million in addition to the $10 million he and family members have given him. president obama is doing some fund racing of his own in wisconsin and washington state. tonight the president is wrapping up a fund-raising blitz across three states. six stops in 61 hours. based on what we know they are charging for tickets, collectively the obama campaign and dnc took in more than $8.5 million. the obama campaign announced today it and the dnc raised $29 million in just the month of january alone. internet privacy or the lack of it is back in the news tonight with word that google has been tracking the web browsing habits of people who thought they were surfing around the web with much more security. our report on this from nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: on the internet

where the privacy rules are still being written, google seems to have pushed the boundaries. in essence, it and several advertising companies found a way to trick an apple software code. then secretly follow the internet browsing of millions of people who use apple safari browser on iphones and computers, but thought they were browsing in private. whether they shopped for a dress, looked up symptoms for alzheimer's, booked a flight or went to facebook, google and others were able to keep track. only when the "wall street journal" started asking questions did google disable the program. >> for six months by enabling this feature, google was able to have a near monopoly on tracking iphones and apple devices, where only a handful of advertisers have access to. >> reporter: apple isn't happy saying in a statement, we are aware some third parties are circumventing safari's privacy

features and are working to put a stop to it. google tells nbc news it was an inadvertent technical glitch as set up its google plus community to compete with facebook. how much privacy should we expect? >> i'm not surprised. i figure there is always somebody watching you. >> as long as they can't find my home and hurt my family, i don't care. >> i don't know who is going to use this information how. >> reporter: in fact, at the moment, there are no federal internet privacy laws on the books. the more that google, facebook or anyone else can learn about our online browsing, the more they can customize their advertising to us. >> there is a lot of money knowing who we are, where we are and what we want to buy at any given time, and all these companies are fighting to figure that out. >> reporter: google promised last year not to misrepresent its privacy practices. on the internet, privacy is still an open question. tom costello, nbc news, washington. so much of this country has been experiencing so much mild weather lately, you could be

tempted to think winter never got here and may now be over, but a lot of americans are about to get a reminder. we are indeed in the month of february. our friend weather channel meteorologist jim cantore is with us tonight. what have you got cooked up for this weekend, jim? >> it's going to be a wild ride for 48 hours starting tomorrow morning. let's show how this plays out and wonderful things we can do with models. you see the time up here. ask it to mimic out the atmosphere in time. things get going tomorrow. probably looking alt severe weather along the gulf coast. a lot of eyes on new orleans this week. that will be one of the areas we'll watch. we have to wait until sunday morning till the cold part of this system gets into play. that's when the snow will break out. a heavy wet snow, kentucky, west virginia, western virginia, including the nation's capital. it won't take much to double the seasonal total so far.

we'll get that to virginia beach as we head into monday morning where we expect the system to be done at that time. severe weather, the possibility of tornadoes. we can have that with these kind of systems. we'll have probably several watches out tomorrow and tomorrow night to the south carolina coast. here is that snow, impacts interstates 64, 81 and 95 tomorrow evening through the nation's capital. by the time all is said and done, the nation's capital will double their one inch total thus far this year for winter. what a difference. >> we'll watch for all of it. jim cantore, thank you very much for being with us. still ahead as we take a break, diagnosing autism. can a brain scan of an infant really give parents early clues? there is intriguing new research tonight. from the ballroom to the classroom, making a difference for kids. ce

researchers working to unlock the mysteries of autism discovered something surprising by looking at the brains of infants. the study is preliminary but could lead to better treatments

for children who haven't even shown symptoms of the neurological disorder that affects the ability to communicate and socialize. our report tonight from nbc's chris jansing. >> reporter: tracy's 7-year-old son alex is autistic. she knew there was a 1-5 chance michael would be, too. autism typically isn't diagnosed until toddlers are 2 or 3, so the wait can be excrutiating. >> we were extremely worried. >> reporter: now results of a study published in the "american journal of psychiatry" offer new hope for early diagnosis. doing brain scans on babies at high risk. researchers found something totally unexpected. signs of autism at just 6 months. >> the wiring of the brain by 6 months of age in those infants that went on to be classified as having autism at 24 months of age, that wiring was different. >> reporter: while findings are preliminary, experts at autism speaks, which helped fund the study, say early diagnosis could be a game-changer.

>> the goal is to be able to reduce the symptoms or even possibly prevent the syndrome from developing. >> reporter: the next step will be more detailed testing. parents shouldn't rush to their pediatricians asking for scans on their baby's yet. >> i think it's still probably several years away until we can use it with individual children. >> reporter: for now, parents should watch for early development warning signs. 6-month-olds who don't smile, 1-year-olds who don't point, wave or babble and babies with no words by 16 months. tracy's family has its answer now. michael's scan showed no signs of autism. >> i actually started to cry when we finished it. it made me feel good as not just a mom, but mother of a child with autism that maybe this might help. >> reporter: a glimpse of a future with the key to unlocking the mysteries of autism. chris jansing, nbc news, new york. we talked earlier with jim

cantore about the place necessary this country where winter hasn't shown up yet. good news has been flu season has been off to its slowest start in decades until now. only two states are posting significant flu numbers, california and missouri, though it's coming. doctors say this year's maxine is well matched to the strain of flu they're seeing, and it's still not too late to get a flu shot. when we come back here tonight, on the eve of her funeral service, aretha franklin opens up about the death of whitney houston.

whitney houston's family is gathering tonight for her funeral. the service will be tomorrow at noon in her childhood church in newark, new jersey. kevin costner, her co-star in the film "the bodyguard" will speak.

stevie wonder will perform. so will aretha franklin, a close family friend who talked with al roker exclusively on "today." >> did you have any idea this little girl would become this? >> who knew? who knew? no one could forecast the monumental success that she had, not even mr. davis. no one knew how big she would blow up. >> reporter: how are you going to remember her? >> as an adorable young lady, as cissy's baby. and a great artist. and a very kind and giving person. very sensitive young lady. >> by the way, there will be more of al's conversation with aretha franklin tonight on "dateline" at 10:00, 9:00 central. about that airport surveillance video that shows a woman in ft. lauderdale who leaves behind a $6,500 rolex in the bin and then the guy who comes along looks around and keeps the watch. well, they found the watch.

it was on his wrist. he told police he thought it was a gift from god, but that was just the woman's watch and he was placed under arrest. a satellite that keeps an eye on the sun for all of us here on earth has sent back some extraordinary images of sun tornados. the visible churning funnels are dark. they're made of plasma. each one is hundreds of thousands of miles long. the solar dynamics observatory satellite, which captured these images, has been up there watching the sun for the past two years. up next here tonight, turning girls and boys into young ladies and gentlemen.

finally here tonight, a man who is changing young lives step by step, teaching them confidence and manners and respect along the way. his story and their story tonight from nbc's anne thompson who has our "making a difference" report. >> big smile, big smile. >> reporter: in this classroom, math and geography are taught with a beat. but it is the intangibles of civility and respect that make ballroom dancing a requirement

for fifth graders in 200 new york city public schools and 400 more around the world. dancing classrooms founder pierre dulaine demonstrates the theory of his program. what do they learn looking face to face that they wouldn't learn sitting next to each other in a classroom? >> you just said it, face to face and having to look at each other. >> reporter: from the time they enter the classroom to the end of each dance. >> say thank you, partner. >> thank you, partner. >> reporter: politeness and fun are the standards. here at brooklyn's ps-160 where english is a second language for 62% of the students, the principal says dancing breaks down barriers. >> on the dance floor we are all the same, one community and that is important. >> reporter: it helps boys and girls through that awkward phase. is it hard to hold a girl, kevin? >> later on you'll get used to it.

>> reporter: ballroom dancing transformed dulaine to a confident professional who danced on broadway. now he delights in the changes he sees in the students. >> one particular boy was angry, kicking everything, running around. he is now the most gentle gentleman in the class. >> reporter: a transformation that extends beyond the dance floor. >> as a teacher, you can refer to that. you were so elegant downstairs. let's see that in the classroom. it will immediately change hair behavior. >> reporter: are you teaching them more than steps? >> much, much more. we are teaching children life lessons. wrapped around ballroom dancing. >> reporter: learning to appreciate each other and themselves. anne thompson, nbc news, brooklyn. >> anne may not conduct another seated interview ever again. that is our broadcast for this friday night and for this week. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. lester holt will be here with you this weekend.

we, of course, hope to see you back here on monday evening. in the meantime have a great weekend. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good evening. on this friday night, i'm jessica aguirre. i'm raj mathai. we begin with developing news in the east bay. a search for a newborn baby taken from a castro valley hospital. investigators believe the little girl's father cut off the child's medical bracelet and walked right out the door. nbc bay area