good tuesday morning. coming up on "early today," a new tip and another search is under way for the body of infamous teamster boss jimmy hoffa. vladimir putin and barack obama face-to-face in their most contentuous meeting to date. at odds over military support in syr syria. a major milestone as afghanistan takes the lead in securing their country from u.s.-nato led forces. plus, will and kate's baby, a $400 million boom for the uk, a study on sleeping and your health and a $3,000 watermelon. "early today" starts right now. >> announcer: this is "early today" for tuesday, june 18th. >> good morning. i'm betty ngyuen. a possible break in one of the greatest mysteries of the last

40 years. monday, the fbi searched a field in suburban detroit for the remains of teamsters leader jimmy hoffa. prosecutors issued a search warrant in oakland township, michigan, which is about 25 miles from detroit. >> it's my fondest hope that we can give that closure not just to the hoffa family, but also to the community, stop tearing that scab off with every new lead and bring some conclusion. >> this latest search was launched after officials reportedly received a tip from aging mobster tony zarilli. though zarilli says he was not involved in the teamster's disappearance, he claims he was told about it by a mobster leader and claims to know how hoffa died. officials say they plan to resume their search today. hoffa disappeared july 30th, 1975. the fbi says a man who caused a major disturbance on a flight from hong kong to new

newark liberty airport on monday is being given a psychiatric evaluation. the passenger claimed everyone on board was being poisoned and he had to be restrained by passengers and crew. one person recorded the two-hour rant which was about everything from chinese spies to edward snowden. >> your life is in jeopardy, your life is in jeopardy, too, if you work for the nsa, if you work for the cia, if you work for the national security agency. you will not get a trial by jury. >> there's no word on whether the man will face any charges. president obama is defending his administration's handling of the syrian war. the president's first extensive comments come following friday's announcement regarding the aid of weapons after bashar al assad's crossing of the so-called red line. >> this argument that if we had

gone in earlier or heavier in some fashion, that the tragedy and chaos taking place in syria wouldn't be taking place, i think is wrong. >> the public remains largely opposed to arming syrian rebels. a new pew research poll finds 70% are against the u.s. and its allies sending arms and military supplies to anti-government groups in syria. 20% are in favor, though. and nearly two-thirds say the u.s. is too overcommitted to get involved in another conflict. syria is taking center stage at the g-8 summit. president obama met with president putin. they do agree the civil war must come to an end. nbc news chief white house correspondent chuck todd joins us live from sligo, ireland. good morning, chuck. >> reporter: good morning, betty. yeah, syria has been the dominant topic here at the g-8. and at that meeting between

president obama and russian president putin it was not nearly as contentious as some had feared given the sort of hotter rhetoric that russian president putin had used during a similar one on one meeting he'd had with the british prime minister. instead, behind the scenes, i'm told that the u.s. president made the emphasis to the russians that their goal is simply to see assad go. not to push the entire assad regi regime, out of the picture altogether. in fact, the united states made it clear that they would welcome parts of the assad regime if they were at the negotiating table for a political settlement. well, that seemed to be reassuring enough, at least for putin to publicly say this while sitting next to the president. >> -- do not coincide with the intention to stop the violence in syria, to stop the growth of victims and to solve the

situation peacefully. >> reporter: while the two leaders agreed to disagree on which side they are on in the issue of syria, they did promise to make a concerted effort to force some sort of political solution to take place in geneva. of course, they made that same promise a few months ago back when the two met in mexico. and that didn't seem to go anywhere then. betty? >> we'll see if it will this time. as the g-8 summit continues, a new claim from the self-identified nsa leaker edward snowden. he now says british andus intelligence eavesdropped on world leaders at a previous meeting. andrea mitchell has that report. >> reporter: as the g-8 summit opened, "the guardian" reported the british, with american help, had spied on past summits. intercepting e-mails and phone calls at a london summit in 2009. one target, russia's then president medvedev's encrypted calls home to moscow, decoded by the nsa. >> what it does do for president

obama, which is problematic it robs him of much moral authority in talking about this. >> reporter: snowden's leaks about the u.s. hacking china also undercut the president when he met with president xi recently. we reported on "nightly news" 18 years ago that the clinton white house spied on leaders in miami in 1994. snowden has claimed extraordinary access to personnel data. former officials say he's exaggerating. >> snowden is wrong. he could not possibly have done the things he claimed he was able to do in terms of tapping communications. >> reporter: but in a web chat with "the guardian," snowden wrote if i target, for example, an e-mail address and that e-mail address sent something to you, joe america, the analyst gets it. all of it. ifs, raw data, content, headers, attachments, everything. did he flee to hong kong to give secrets to china? snowden denied any contact with the chinese government writing, this is a predictable smear that i anticipated before going public. as the u.s. media has a

knee-jerk red china. and after this from dick cheney -- >> i think he's a traitor. >> reporter: snowden wrote, being called a traitor by dick cheney is the highest honor you can give an american. >> that was andrea mitchell reporting. this morning, a major turning point in the u.s.-led war in afghanistan. as of today, afghan forces are taking the lead in the country's security from the u.s.-led nato coalition. president hamid karzai presided over the handover ceremony in kabul. this announcement was met by a new round of violence when a bomb exploded near the ceremony killing at least three people. american forces will now move entirely into a supporting role before their full withdrawal next year. massive demonstrations to tell you about in brazil. more than 200,000 people in at least eight cities took to the streets monday. they are protesting poor public services, police violence and government corruption. in rio, there were clashes as demonstrators threw rocks at police and set fire to cars and government buildings.

in northern mex cork at least one person has died due to excessive rain over the weekend and throughout the day on monday. piedras negras has received over 17 inches of rain. that's about 60% of their annual rainfall. the weather has caused $31 million in damages and left at least 40,000 people homeless. fo unfortunately more rain is expected for that region. bill karins is here with a look at the weather. hopefully we don't see anything like that. >> no, just the opposite. it's dry -- >> almost summer, too. >> you want to talk about summer. wait until you see what's going on in alaska. this is just like epic alaska summer heat. this is going to go down as one of the hottest weeks ever recorded in interior alaska. here's the setup. still the same as yesterday. we have what we call a blocking weather pattern. it's not move anything time fast. this could last until thursday. maybe friday with that big ridge of high pressure right over the top. overhead. the humidities are pretty low.

not oppressive heat but the fact we'll be 87 again in fairbanks. some spots have a chance of being 90. 94 in mcgrath yesterday. and in the west, a big upper level low. still spinning off the northwest coast bringing showers, hit and miss through much of washington state and the northwest. today that's going to begin to move inland. we'll spark some showers, maybe even a thunderstorm or two with that upper l around 60 degrees, coastal oregon. we'll take a look at tomorrow's forecast coming up. >> looking ford that. thank you bill. in the meantime, today the pentagon will announce when women can train as army rangers and navy s.e.a.l.s. plus, 7-eleven workers, get this, being forced to put in

100-hour workweeks and treat it like plantation workers? we have those details when "early today" returns.

welcome back. defense secretary chuck hague cell set to announce new roles for women in the military. women could begin training as army rangers by 2015 and navy s.e.a.l.s a year later. the owners of 14 7-eleven stores have been charged with fraud, identity theft and concealing undocumented workers. authorities say conditions for those employees were like, quote, a modern day plantation system. dating back to 2000. new research shows cheating yourself of a full night's sleep can have long-term down sides. unfortunately, i know that. sleep specialists at two american universities found it can put you at risk for shortened life expectancy and heart and kidney complications. so get your sleep, folks. a phoenix filmmaker has been convicted after sending his

16-year-old nephew into a busy intersection, look at this, with a fake grenade launcher. what was he thinking? michael david turley was found guilty of endangering the teen's life and carrying out a terrorism hoax. and the doctor is in. barbra streisand has received an honorary doctorate of philosophy from the hebrew university of jerusalem. it was given to her in recognition of her professional achievements and dedication to israel and the jewish people. for an early look at business, kayla touchi joins us. >> good morning, betty. stocks soared monday even as investors continued the guessing game over what the federal reserve will do at its middle easting this week. an article in the financial times suggests the fed may pull back on its stimulus program soon but that doesn't necessarily mean an interest rate hike will follow. chrysler is expected to f m formally refuse the government recall of jeeps because of a

risk of nir a rear-end crash. chrysler said the jeeps are safe. regulators could threaten chrysler with legal action. at&t is launching solar powered charging stations for smart phones and tablets throughout new york city. they can accommodate six device at once, regardless of wireless carrier. if the program is successful, it may be expanded nationwide. betty, back to you. >> got to keep those phones charged. thank you kayla. netflix whose stock has been on a role will offer family friendly choices off a new website. netflix promises easy access with mobility for long summer road trips. the british economy is about to get a $400 million boost thanks to none other than will and kate's special delivery. royal baby sleepwear, booties and so much more will be big biz for the royal family and retailers. and check out this $3,000 watermelon. boy, i sure hope it's worth it. these black skinned melons grown only in japan's northern island

of hokido are dense and sweeter than regular watermelons. three sport radios hosts have been fired for going over the line. you got to hear about this one. and former nba star allen iverson is accused of abducting his five children. plus, will brad pitt's world war z be a blockbuster or a bust? next.

all right. time to get the latest in sports now. game three of the stanley cup finals, bruins daniel paille rips a shot past goaltender corey crawford for a 1-0 lead. now ten minutes later patrice bergeron is left open on the back post for an easy power play goal making it 2-0, bruins. the bruins hold on to win, giving them a 2-1 series lead. here is a bizarre story involving former nba star allen iverson. tmz reported iverson's ex-wife has filed legal documents alleging that allen has abducted their five children. she claims her ex-husband asked for permission to take the kid on vacation to charlotte, north carolina, back in may, but the former nba star never returned them home. his ex-wife claims the children are being holed up in a sheraton hotel in georgia. now the former nba star, he denies the allegations. the nba rumor mill has officially begun. espn sources have reported that

the lakers and clippers are in talks to execute a blockbuster trade that would send a superstar dwight howard to the other side of the staples center in return for blake griffin and eric bledsoe. and this is a horrific story. three atlanta sports radio hosts have been fired for making fun of former nfl player steve gleason on air. gleason, who was diagnosed with als in 2011 is confined to a wheelchair and has lost his ability to speak. well, these hosts set up a skit where they pretended they were interviewing gleason and then set up a fake caller with a robotic voice. the host then went on to discuss whether gleason could be alive by next week. yeah, they were fired. and the hosts have since released an apology. lastly to the college world series, where we see the downfall of civilization play out. right there, one young girl gets a foul ball as a souvenir. she's excited. she brags about it to her friends and then, well, the

friends launch a revolt attacking in all directions and then the fun and games end when the girl, you see it right there. she elbowed that little boy who starts crying because he got kool-aid spilled all over him. it's classic, folks. "early today" sports is brought to you by touch of gray. get rid of some gray, never all. >> just ahead, naval academy football players who face sexual assault charges as early today. plus, actor johnny depp thrown from a horse and trampled during filming of "the lone ranger." we've got those details next.

welcome back. our stagnant weather pattern is stuck in place. we are going to watch more in the way of that storm on the northwest coast beginning to slowly push inland over the next couple of days. and that's going to spark a few afternoon showers and thunderstorms out there. but again, it's not going to be widespread. so as we go throughout today, that's going to be the case. the southwest looks fine. tomorrow a little cooler in vegas. in the northwest, carry the umbrella, just for a short period of time. >> thank you, bill. now for some entertainment news. angelina jolie's recent double mastectomy has been lauded as heroic but breast cancer survivor melissa etheridge viewed the decision as fear driven more than anything else. she told the "washington blade" she would not have opted for the surgery if she had the breast mutation gene and encourages women to research all of their options. the comic book world is

buzzing with breaking news. sony films announced plans to release two additional spider-man movies in 2016 and 2018 after the "amazing spider-man 2" opens in 2014. according to writing director josh wedden, "the avengers 2" will have a new bad guy to replace loki. brad pitt was in the big apple for the premiere of his new film "world war z." i heard that had mixed reviews. now i hear they fixed the ending and it's fantastic. >> more of the buzz was what brad was looking like yesterday. the long hair. the bulky look to him. >> he's ageing a little bit. still looking good, though. >> you're going to take him off your speed dial, huh? >> i'm betty ngyuen. i hope this is just your first stop of the day on nbc.

leading the news this morning. in "the new york times," at trial, hit man says it broke my heart to learn bulger was an fbi informant. and this from a witness who told the court he committed eight murders for which he has never been charged. and in the boston herald, one fund passes $50 million -- the $50 million mark. 247 applications from victims of the boston marathon bombings have been submitted and money from the fund will be given to verified victims by july 1st. and topping our news, a military official tells nbc news that three naval academy midshipmen accused of sexual assault could face charges as early as today. a female midshipmen says the men, all academyootball players at the time, assaulted her at an off-campus party in april of last year.

syria taking center stage at the g-8 summit. pew research finds 70% of the american public are against the u.s. and its allies sending arms and military supplies to anti-government groups in syria. 20% are in favor of it. and a possible break in one of the greatest mysteries of the last 40 years. monday, the fbi searched a field in suburban detroit for the remains of teamsters leader jimmy hoffa which could possibly answer the longstanding question, where is jimmy hoffa in johnny depp took a tumble off his horse while filming "the lone ranger." they were not harmed by that fall. he did suffer some minor scrapes when the horse briefly trampled him. in and talk about having a great day. this guy was all smiles when he bumped into sharon stone in tel aviv while wearing a t-shirt with a scene from her classic film "basic instinct." >> that guy was probably like a toddler when that movie came out, too. >> can you imagine meeting her wearing that shirt? what's the irony of it. she looks great, though.

>> 1 in infinity odds. time now for a look ahead and a look back. a white house event on gun control today. vice president biden will speak about the obama administration's progress in combating gun violence. women make up half of the new class of astronauts as nasa celebrates an anniversary today. 30 years ago, sally ride became the first american woman in space aboard the "challenger" shuttle. happy birthday to country singer blake shelton who is 37. actress isabella rossellini turns 61. and sir paul mccartney, he is 71. here's what's coming up later on the "today" show. a "today" exclusive with the new miss usa erin brady and miss utah, marisa powell, who talks about her pageant answer that just went vival. and a performance by the tony award winning cast of "kinky boots." keep it here for more news, weather and sports. i'm betty ngyuen. thanks for watching "early today." have a good one.

new this morning, another bay area tech company releasing information about the federal government's request for your internet data. what yahoo! is saying next. plus taking on criminals. we'll tell you about the new and unusual measure one bay area city is taking the make things harder for car thieves. the shark tank about to get a new name. the changes coming today to one of the biggest arenas in the bay area. right now, the bridge may be old but always breathtaking. a live look over san francisco as the bay bridge helps illuminate your morning on this tuesday, june 18. this is "today in the bay." guess what? one day closer to the ek