ah! on this sunday night, inside the mission. new details about the failed rescue of an american hostage. we're learning just how quickly the raid was put together and what may have caused it to go wrong. targeted. was an american mother murdered overseas because she was a westerner. tonight what her former husband is telling us about the attack and the children she leaves behind. royal welcome. prince william and duchess kate arrive in new york for the three-day visit. what is in store and who is missing from their whirlwind trip. and polar express. nonstop service to the north pole for a group of children who can use some holiday cheer.

from nbc world news headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. good evening. it is a circumstance the white house said under the dire circumstances was a necessary one but with the death of american photo journalist luke somers after a failed attempt to rescue him from al qaeda terrorists. tonight we have more details by the special operations resources in a row moat part of yemen, including the fa-- the narrow te line, or else somers would find imminent death at the hand of his captures. and we are learning to see what had the mission fail. kristin welker joins us with more. >> reporter: the body of 33-year-old luke somers was taken to a u.s. military base in africa. his family mourns in private as

the u.s. government begins to assess while the mission failed it. was a high-risk mission that went terribly wrong but today in washington there was rare bipartisan support. >> i do think it was the right decision to go in for the rescue attempt. >> reporter: tonight new details. senior administration officials said friday night navy s.e.a.l.s landed two miles from the cluster of buildings but the cover was blown sparking a fire fight and giving the captors time to shoot somers and pierre korkie. they believe it was a dog that alerted them. >> you can remember when the osama bin laden helicopter went down. these are things that happen and you keep moving. >> the al qaeda captors were probably on heightened alert. they tried to rescue him days ago.

they set a deadline of by saturday to kill somers. the president gave the authorization friday morning and it took hour -- it occurred hours later at around 4:00 eastern time. >> and that is why we send the army, navy, special ops to do these things. >> reporter: traveling overseas chuck hagel defended the rescue attempt. >> is it imperfect? yes. is there risk? yes. but we start with the fact that we have an american being held hostage and that american's life is in danger. that is where we start. and then we proceed from there. >> reporter: meanwhile, the charity that employed pierre korkie wrote on its website that his release was negotiated and imminent and they said the u.s. government had no knowledge of of that. and they stress rescue missions are always risky and in this case time was running out. >> there may be rational

exuberance after the suck says the bin laden but these missions are secretly challenging. just look at blackhawk down to see these missions fail just as often as they succeed. >> some yemens in the area say they were killed but u.s. officials denied that. they said as far as our guys know they killed almost, leaving open the possibility they might have killed civilians. they declined to say how many american hostages are still being held overseas. >> kristin welker at the white house. thanks. a violent night of rallies in california offer the grand jury decision over the police officer in new york. it is a movement that has attracted some attention and has some professional athletes silently showing their support. hallie jackson has the story. [ chanting ]

zplfrnlt d >> reporter: demonstrations in the bay area turns violent. >> a kid came in with brake fluid like he would set the store on fire. >> reporter: protests stayed peaceful in chicago, seattle and portland. protesting not to indict a new york city police officer who appeared to put eric guardi-- e garner in a chokehold before he died. >> i don't want what happened in st. louis to happen anywhere else. >> i can't breathe sported by derrick rose and reggie bush this weekend, on the heels of the controversial decision in ferguson, missouri, not to indict the police officer in the death of michael brown. >> people don't feel they are being heard, not just about the one grand jury decision but the ones that went before. so you have folks feeling quite

vulnerable right now and not having their leaders hear them. >> reporter: president obama in an interview with b. e. t. says the message is loud and clear but the results take time. >> we have to be persistent. because typically progress is in steps, in increments. >> those small steps may not be enough for protesters marking for a bigger change. hallie jackson, nbc news. three determine democratic senator larry landrieu loses to republican congressman bill kaziddy in the runoff election. it further soliz fied the gop control over the senate starting next year. and in the philippines, they continue to be battered by a typhoon that has killed two people. the storm is massive as seen taken by a astronaut along the space station. and it is moving toward the capital city of manila.

we get our report from there with miggalal mag air. >> reporter: unleashing powerful winds and relentless rain, this monster typhoon is bearing through the philippines and in coastal communities, many held on for life. towers out and homes washed away and now the floodwaters are rising. >> translator: where are we going to live now asked this woman, one of the 30 million effected by the storm. tonight more than a million people are on the move. churches and schools are packed. the desperate seeking shelter anywhere they can. in takliban where many died last year in typhoon haiyan, most heeded the warning to leave. there is new damage but so far no confirmed deaths. jim mass he hadda is to the north. >> there is good reason to be worried. a 15 foot storm surge was

predicted to strike right here and could have wreaked havoc on this town of 175,000. >> reporter: the planets storm this year weakened when it made land fall and now churning with the intensity of a category 2 hurricane. >> moving at 9 miles per hour, lashing rain could trigger mudslides in the country's biggest city n. manila they were praying and now preparing. stockpiling food, millions can only wait. a monster storm leaving behind destruction and promising to do more damage in the days ahead. here in manila where it is just after 7:30 in the morning, the dark clouds are rolling in. the whipping winds are beginning to pick up. and an ominous sign for millions as the government confirms the number of fatalities believed to be less than a handful, incredibly low for a storm this

size. lester. >> miguel almaguer in the fps, thank you. the husband of a woman killed in abu dhabi is speaking out saying she was targeted because he was an outsider. we have the story tonight. >> reporter: a candlelight vigil for a mother killed in according to what reports describe as a personal terrorist attack. ib ibolya ryan was stabbed in a bathroom in a mall outside where her sons were waiting. >> they waited there for her for a good hour. >> police believe a woman wearing black attacked her. they think the killing was inspired by the extremism on the internet. she is an american teacher who

is described on a family facebook page as trying to make the world a better place. >> she had a positive personality. always positive and optimistic about life. >> there is no reason why your ex-wife was targeted? no reason what so reason other than she was american? >> other than she was a westernwester westerner. this lady, i shouldn't call her a lady, she was a monster, was waiting for her to come into the bathroom, unfortunately with my kids' mother. >> the emirates royal family has offered to pay for the children's education. and in the interview the 13-year-old daughter who you saw there told me that she believes her mom will be proud of them, saying their mother always tried to give them strength.

lester. >> we'll here more of keir's investigation on today. prince william and kate have just arrived to america on a whirlwind visit that includes a stop at the 9/11 memorial and a brooklyn nets game. kate snow has more today. >> reporter: on the manhattan upper east side the crowds gathered. katie's baby bump barely visible and they flew commercial on british airways. >> they were mingling with everybody else. >> it was nearly 30 years ago that william's parents traveled to the u.s. together, charming crowds and meeting president and mrs. reagan and taking one memorable spin on the dance floor. prince william and kate are staying at the carlyle when princess diana spent the night. the ambassador to the hotel

represents them. >> after the meal she would come back and say thank you to everybody. think what it means to the staff. >> now they want to make sure the duke and duchess get the same view. >> it is sight a christmas tree and you look out of the southern exposure with the lights and twinkles. >> they will raise a lot of money on this trip. 1-year-old prince george is at home. >> i think it is glamorous, them as a couple, trying to raise money for their foundation. i don't think a toddler fits in with that plan. >> tomorrow princewomen will jet to washington and kate is heading to harlem. at the center for child development, kids were busy decorating frames to give her. >> it is a letter for the princess. >> even if they don't fully understand who is coming.

>> he's expecting elsa, from frozen. >> reporter: the owner of the new york british shop or a facet today in her honor. >> this country is rocked with joy, and i love that. i think it is fantastic. it is great for my business. >> i'm sure. >> reporter: and it is the closest many americans will get to a brush with royalty. kate snow, nbc news, new york. when "nbc nightly news" continues on this sunday, an announcement that is getting a lot of attention and could change the way millions of women approach child birth. and later, proof this weekend that christmas [prof. burke] it's easy to buy insurance and forget about it. but the more you learn about your coverage, the more gaps you might find. like how you thought you were covered for this. [boy] check it out,mom! [prof. burke]when you're really only covered for this. or how you figured you were covered for this. when you're actually paying for this. you might be surprised at what's hiding in your coverage. talk to farmers and get smarter about your insurance. ♪ we are farmers bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪

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aa in london. >> it is a revolutionary idea about having a baby. changing the old notion you have to go to the hospital. the british government said delivering with midwives at home or personaling centers is -- or birthing centers is safer for 45% of the children. >> the principal reason is they are kept away from doctors with their knives. >> this professor wrote the guidelines based on a study saying more healthy women had more epidur alz and complications in delivery wards. >> we have overmedicated the delivery and not doing good so as a result. >> for the first time for this mother, giving birth at home is not recommended. she had her son dash at a birthing center. >> i never worried. i felt support. >> in britain, 90% of the births are in a hospital. in u.s. it is more 98%.

>> i think i feel more safe at the hospital in case of emergencies. >> onstet ri stet rikbstetricia gynocologists think hospitals are still best. >> dopplers like to deliver babies in the hospital because that is where they can ensure the safest and healthiest mother and baby outcome. >> but even in the u.s. views are changing. rossi wilson of los angeles had her first son in a hospital and her second at home. >> it was a great experience. i felt very empowered by it and i felt it was a very natural, comfortable environment for me to be in. >> so could american moms join the british revolution? >> we have been taught that you go to a place to have a baby. you don't have someone come into your home to have a baby. will that change? yes. but slowly. >> reporter: still, for a growing number of moms, the more natural way is the better way.

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the flag atop the white house was lowered to half staff today to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the attack on pearl harbor. the december 7th bombing raid on a sunday morning launched the united states into world war ii and claimed the lives of more than 2400 americans. that single attack nearly destroyed america's battleship fleet. but one ship, the uss colorado, was spared. tucked safely away in a washington state shipyard. the ship would go on to see some of the fearest naval combat of world war ii. now a part of the uss colorado is fulfilling a new mission. glenn fairly of our seattle affiliate king 5 has the story.

>> we walk on floors every day. but this floor has meaning. this floor has scars. at times it was awash with the blood of brave men because it is not a floor. this is the deck of a battleship, the uss colorado. >> a piece of shrapnel hit him right here and came out over here and i just lowered him to the deck. he was gone. >> reporter: this man can still envision the world war ii day when a young enson was standing next to him. >> he never made it. >> this is the ship's history an. >> to tokyo bay. >> his father was a radio man aboard the colorado who survived the war but nearly 100 did not. >> he probably saw more than any other battleship in the war. one of the reasons why was because it wasn't damaged at the start of the war. >> and while it wasn't there from the beginning of the war,

it was there for the end. anchored next to the then new battleship uss missouri in tokyo bay for the sur sender ceremony, september 2nd, 1945. but the story doesn't end well it. was back to bremerton for a life in moth balls and finally to the scrappers torch on harbor island. >> it is a heartbreaking thing, really. but the scrappers didn't get everything. it was all that gorgeous deck, much tv went to boeing where it was displayed in a cafeteria for decades. but now boeing has donated it to the uso at sea tech. it remodeled for a haven of officers and their families seeking respite from travel. those like davy jones survived the war and kept on living. >> at 91 i ain't doing too bad. >> and they have come to take a

last look. >> it is beautiful that we still have this and it is being taken care of. >> you may never see it in the fast-paced world of modern air travel. but for those who now serve. >> they will be the ones to walk the deck of this ship as their grandfathers did some seven decades ago. glenn farley, nbc news, seattle. up next here tonight, the glenn farley, nbc news, seattle. up next here tonight, the polar express takes f nobody told us to expect it... intercourse that's painful glenn farley, nbc news, seattle. up next here tonight, the polar express takes f due to menopausal changes it's not likely to go away... ...on its own. so let's do something about it. premarin vaginal cream can help it provides estrogens to help rebuild vaginal tissue and make intercourse more comfortable. premarin vaginal cream treats vaginal changes due to menopause and moderate-to-severe painful intercourse caused by these changes. don't use it if you've had unusual bleeding, breast or uterine cancer, blood clots, liver problems, stroke or heart attack, are allergic to any of its ingredients

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finally tonight, that time of year airports are full of travelers heading to places close to their hearts. but one christmas tradition has some very special passengers flying off to a place like no other. nbc's john yang got to join them. >> it is weeks before christmas but all through chicago's o'hare international airport, santas helpers were stirring, preparing a very special flight. this was no ordinary trip, from check-in to security in frequent flier smiles an at the gate no one seemed to mind a delay. >> have you ever seen a gate area like this before. >> i've seen it crazy before, but not this festive.

>> no wonder. look at the destination. >> i'm rudolph. >> this is not alexandria's first trip but maybe the most exciting. >> where are you going today? >> to the north pole. >> who are you going to see? >> santa. >> and most special of all, passengers, 33 children with serious illnesses in their families selected by the star light children's foundation. for more than two decades united airlines employees and retirees around the country have v volunteered to decorate and get gifts and raise fuel for the flights. >> it is one day without doctors. >> after taking off and breaking through the clouds there were songs. but the children all nestled and snug in their seats, visions of christmas gifts danced in their head.

this girl battling a brain tumor made a wish not for just herself, but for snow cones and for all of her friends and those like me to be cured. and just a half an hour letter, santa waited. >> and her number one wish -- no words necessary. hundreds of volunteers wishing a merry christmas to all, and to all a good flight. john yang, nbc news, chicago. that is "nbc nightly news" for this sunday. brian williams will be here tomorrow. stay tuned for football night in america followed by the patriots versus the chargers. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. for all of us here at nbc news, good night. the nhl, premier league and

prime time's number one show, "sunday night football," and super bowl xlix. on the first sunday of deceer, "sunday night football" comes to still sunny san diego, california, where the chargers welcome in the patriots. after last week's loss in green bay, snapped a seven-game winning streak, tom brady and the patriots are looking to rebound quickly against the chargers. >> let's go. >> in san diego, the chargers have experienced with late