the nation including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. and today we begin with a deadly confrontation. the man who shot and killed trayvon martin is speaking out for the first time. in an interview with fox news channel sean hannity, george zimmerman, who's free on bail while awaiting his trial, gave his account of what happened on that fateful february night. nbc's jay gray has the story. >> reporter: his message was clear and direct. >> i'm not a racist, and i'm not a murderer. >> reporter: in an interview on fox news channel hannity's show, george zimmerman discussed in detail the night he shot and killed trayvon martin, saying it was the unarmed teenager that initiated the deadly confrontation. >> he started bashing my head into the concrete sidewalk. i was -- as soon as he broke my nose, i started yelling for help. >> reporter: it was during that fight, he says, that both he and martin reached for the gun strapped to zimmerman's waist, a gun he fired one time, taking the teenager's life. zimmerman said he didn't regret following martin that night or

carrying a gun and that there's nothing he would have done differently. >> i feel it was all god's plan, and for me to second-guess it or judge it -- immediately after the broadcast trayvon martin's father, tracy martin, released this written statement, quote, we must worship a different god because there's no way that my god would have wanted zimmerman to kill my teenage son. during the interview, zimmerman had a direct apology for trayvon's parents. >> i am sorry that they buried their child. i can't imagine what it feels like, and i pray for them daily. >> reporter: as he now prepares for what is sure to be an explosive and emotional murder trial. jay gray, nbc news. well, "the new york times" reports pentagon officials are in talks with the israeli government, planning for what appears to be the imminent collapse of syrian president bashir al assad. obama administration officials tell the "times" the pentagon is

against israeli's suggestions to destroy syria's weapons facilities because an israeli intervention might prompt syrians to rally in defense of assad. officials say wednesday's deadly bombing in the heart of damascus that killed the defense minister and his the deputy, assad's brother-in-law, may turn out to be a turning point in the country's conflict. well, israel is vowing retaliation against iran for the bombing of a tourist bus in bulgaria. at least seven people died in the attack on the bus in an airport in the resort city on the black sea. the israelis had just arrived on a flight from tel aviv for a vacation in bulgaria. bulgaria's interior minister says that a suspected suicide attacker was carrying a fake driver's license issued in the state of michigan and was the latest in a series of overseas attacks that israel attributes to iran. iran's tv calls claims that the nation was behind the attack,

quote, ridiculous. elsewhere london's metropolitan police have arrested three muslim men suspected of traveling to pakistan for terror training. police say they intended to commit acts of terrorism. one woman has been charged with possession of a document likely to be of use to a terrorist in the same operation. all four will appear in court today. authorities say the arrests are not related to the upcoming o olympic games which start a week from tomorrow. well, now here is a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in florida a pair of armed robbers had the tables turn on them after storming into an internet cafe. the attackers were holding a baseball bat and a gun, but a 71-year-old customer pulled his own gun out and shot the robbers as he chased them out the door. both suspects were wounded and later arrested. in pennsylvania, a kidnapping victim made a daring escape from a moving van. he rolled to the ground and then ran toward police.

he says he was grabbed right off the street, ordered to strip to his underwear, and threatened with death. police have identified one suspect. in boston, just frightening moments for a woman in a wheelchair after she tumbled down an escalator at a transit stop. when someone tried to help her, she then fell out of the chair completely. transit workers say they only got to her as fast as they did because of newly installed survllance cameras. she suffered minor injuries. >> and in new york, wild weather turned a subway station into a gushing geyser. commuters had to dodge heavy flooding inside the building just to try to make it to their train. and then high above it all, our top-of-the-rock camera shows a time lapse view of just how fast the rain and hail slammed new york city. it was epic. and then, finally, off the coast of florida, watch out. yep. that is a great white shark. it is swimming a mere 15 feet from a diver. he had just gone into the water when the predator moved toward him.

fortunately the man stayed calm and then made it back to the boat. and now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> glad you still have your arms and legs. >> exactly. a little too much time getting that footfootage. >> if you're going on go, might as well get some good pictures. fabio. >> what? >> a little named hurricane.pic. fabio. >> what? >> a little named hurricane.as . fabio. >> what? >> a little named hurricane. it did dissipate. stilled clouds out there from yesterday. in los angeles yesterday kind of cool, high of only 73. the story across the thags hnat been the heat wave. 106 in kansas city, the same temperature at phoenix, even hit 100 from d. skr ac. much of the west was cooler. that moisture was fabio still

riding to the north here. you can still see it. a few radar echos. but a lot of it not making it to the ground. an upper level low my try to drift back to the northeast. this is the boundary between the warm air and cooler air. l.a. today should be nice. inland continuing, but that's where we should be this time of year, right around 100. looks like our nice summer like weather pattern will continue in the west. no complaints this weekend.

>> bill, thanks so much. well, big blue boost its outlook, ebay profits fly, hacker group anonymous identifies burger bad guys. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, sorry ladies. signs are all pointing to george clooney may not be available much longer. coming up, walk-offs, a scary fall, and did you make money in the market yesterday? if so, i know why. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. a new york times/cbs news poll finds the presidential race a virtual tie with mitt romney supported by 47% of those surveyed. president obama was at 46%. 20% of the voters say they may change their mind by november. senator john mccain defended huma abedin, a top aide state department official, after

allegations by congresswoman michele bachmann that she is connected to the muslim brotherhood. mccain said bachmann's attacks have, quote, no logic, no basis, and no merit, and they need to stop now. meanwhile in an interview with "people" magazine, abedin says she's proud to be married to former congressman anthony weiner despite the sexting scandal that led to his resignation. she said her husband did a really stupid thing but added they, quote, have a normal family. yokamon hearn was executed yesterday in texas for the 1998 abduction and fatal shooting of a stockbroker. it was the state's first execution using only one lethal drug instead of three due to shortages. >> and in china, a taxi driver hung on to the hood of a drunk driver who had collided with this taxi cab. the drunk driver tried to escape, but the taxi driver held on until he stopped at a karaoke bar and the police could make an arrest. and now here is an early

look at how wall street's going to kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,908 after climbing 103 points yesterday. the s&p gained 9. the nasdaq spiked 32. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei rose 68 points, while in hong kong the hang seng skyrocketed 319. well, the s&p 500 leapt to its highest level since may wednesday as traders chose to ignore bad news and cherry pick the good news coming out of earnings. intel lowered its growth forecast late tuesday, but gross margins were healthy, so the stock rose more than 3%. honeywell jumped almost 7% on healthy profits. >> emc jumped over 9% after reporting a preliminary second quarter profit, and its vmware unit was up 12%. vivus jumped almost 10% after regulators approved its weight loss drug. on the downside, rovi plummeted to its lowest level in three and a half years after

slashing its annual forecast and being downgraded by two brokerages. keep an eye today on ibm. big blue rose after hours after boosting its full year earnings outlook. also watch ebay, which also rose late on quarterly sales and profit that soared past estimates. in economic news, new u.s. home construction rose in june to the highest level in almost four years. elsewhere, capital one will pay $210 million to settle allegations it allowed call center vendors to use deceptive tactics to pressure or mislead consumers to pay for add-on products such as identity theft monitoring services. reuters reports soccer powerhouse manchester united will now launch its ipo on the new york stock exchange. and, finally, hypervocal.com reports the vigilante hacking group anonymous used gps data embedded in this social website

photo to inform burger king of the identity of the poster seen standing on containers of shredded lettuce. he and two ohio co-workers have now been fired. thankfully big brother is watching. well, coming up, the padres double up, the royals walk off, and a major league first for one oakland a, plus, a blue jay goes all out but only comes up with bumps and bruises. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. rain and relief for heat for some but if you're in the central plains, you're not so lucky. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports, a marathon matchup between the dodgers and phillies yesterday ended in dramatic fashion. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the dodgers' matt kemp missed 36 games with a pulled hamstring, made his return this week, and the dodgers are glad he did. taking on the phils, dodgers down one in the tenth. two down. runners on the corners. kemp with a shot to short. a bang-bang play at first, and he was safe. dodgers tied the game at 3-3. then in the 12th, no doubt about this, kemp's first homer since returning from the d.l., and it was a big one.

dodgers walked off with a 5-3 win in 12. that's not the only walk-off in california. rangers and a's knotted at 3-3 in the ninth. brandon hicks has never hit a home run until now. touch a ball, brandon, you just won the game, and the a's downed the rangers, 4-3. are you starting to see a trend? another tied game, another walk-off homer. this time billy butler with the honors, and the royals beat the mariners, 8-7. now to san diego, you'd think if one player had two home runs, their team would win, right? not so. matt downs hit a pair, but that was it for houston. padres doubled up the astros, 8-4. yanks and blue jays, scary moment in the third. mark teixeira, a pop fly into foul territory. brett lawrie chased it down. reached over the camera well and tumbled and fell hard onto the pavement. look at teixeira. he knew it was bad. lawrie, absolutely no regard for his body tried to make the play but couldn't come up with the ball. thankfully he was okay, but he'll have a lot of bumps and bruises this morning. yanks won the game, 6-0. and, finally, if you made

money in the stock market yesterday, you might want to thank mariano rivera. the yanks' closer was an opener. traded in his pinstripes for a suit and rang the opening bell at the new york stock exchange. rivera has to do this more often. the market was up yesterday. baseball's all-time save leader is now saving you some money. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. well, who is the highest paid actress on television, and what russell brand is saying about his recent divorce. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, he may be a star in germany, but now for some reason here at home, there's a wave of people trying to get a piece. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this thursday morning. some clouds, maybe a sprinkle or two over southern california north of l.a., but we won't see much of that moisture. the clouds will thin out. upper level low could bring showers and storms to areas around portland to medford, but that will be hit and miss. most areas will be dry. and it looks like a pretty nice friday draft with the exception of the chilly temperatures up there in seattle. it if you're watching us on kntv, nbc's bay area news, in oakland, celebrate 75 years of the golden gate bridge at spanning the bay at the oakland

international airport. and that's your pacific ebt venf the day. i went there and i didn't go over the bridge. >> only you, bill karins. >> i know. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. well, halle berry is out of the hospital after suffering a head injury on an l.a. movie set. the oscar winner was injured during a fighting sequence. tmz reports she has a possible concussion after falling on concrete. well, forbes named sofia vergara tv's top earning actress, taking in $19 million. reality star kim kardashian came in second with $18 million. eva longoria ranked third with $15 million, thanks largely to the earnings of the final season of "desperate housewives." well, in his first interview since his divorce was finalized monday, russell brand told howard stern while katy perry is, quote, young, successful, and dedicated, he was, quote,

into the idea of marriage and having kids. as for not going after any of perry's $40 million in their settlement, brand said simply, quote, i've got a good job. and, finally, is george clooney off the market? well, tmz reports both he and girlfriend stacy keibler flew their parents to italy for a gathering at clooney's lake como villa. well, this comes to us from whdh 7 news in boston where in nearby somerville, police are doing the unthinkable. they are hassling the hoff. cardboard cutouts featuring the icon are being swiped from stores. this is happening all across new england. now, this is part of an ad campaign, but fans seem to think it gives them license to just steal the super-sized likeness. as for the man himself, hasselhoff says he's humbled. the sponsor would rather you leave the signs be. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

clowns in mexico put their funny business on hold for a day. they offered their thanks for the work they've gotten this year. >> look at lynn. >> very funny, bill. you wouldn't have known that they weren't working since all of them were dressed in their colorful wigs and full costume to the delight of spectators. there was singing, dancing, and chanting for the crowd. in england prince charles showed off his adventurous side with a little caution thrown in. of course, dressed in a double-breasted suit, the prince of wales took to a blue rock climbing wall at a secondary school. you can't make this up. how hilarious is this?

he balanced his feet on small plastic studs a foot off the ground. >> the pants not ripping was a big deal. in london you can check into a very unusual hotel. the taxi driver has turned his car into a miniature hotel room for olympic visitors looking for cheaper accommodations. fearing reduced fares due to heavy congestion he's fit the back of his traditional black london cab with a bed. it's going to go for about 78 bucks a night. it will soon have curtains for privacy and a solar-powered fridge. how about that? no bookings quite yet. >> no bookings? compared to the prices that you're going to have to pay? >> well, you're in the back of a car. >> yeah. >> why not rent a car and park it. it's time for now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day on nbc. the u.n. security council is

expected to vote on a resolution with nonmilitary sanctions ending the 16-month conflict. russia is expecting to veto it because it could lead to an unusual rash of force. the space shuttle pavilion will open up to the public. the shuttle "enterprise," nasa's prototype vehicle which never actually flew in space will be on display. and happy birthday to former "e.r." actor anthony edwards who turns 50. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and more as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. trayvon martin's parents speak out live in response to george zimmerman's tv interview. and "today" goes live from hollywood for this year's emmy award nominations. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports, and more.

i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station. the day, today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

>> reporter: the wife of embattled san francisco sheriff ross mirkarimi set to testify again as he fights to keep his job. i'm christie smith. coming up in a live report, we'll tell you what she had to say about the fight that led to this whole thing. >> first the fire, now the cleanup. san jose officials move in to clear out homeless camps at kelly park. why they say it's not just about the environment. >> plus, an nbc bay area exclusive, a deputy rescues a baby from choking, not a moment too soon. what he says about that quick response. >> a live look outside on this thursday morning, waiting for the sun's