good morning. coming up on "early today," breaking news on the heels of the death of american aide worker kayla mueller. the a.p. is reporting thousands of new foreign fighters are joining isis. after 17 years, comedy central's jon stewart is leaving "the daily show." apple has just done something no other companies on the planet has achieved. tonight's powerball jackpot is approaching a half billion dollars. "saturday night live" gears up for a 40th anniversary extravaganza. it's and, february 11. early today starts right now. good morning. good to be with you. i'm francis rivera. a deteriorating situation in yemen has forced the state department to relocate its

already skeletal staff at the u.s. embassy and suspend operations. the british embassy has taken it a step further, telling its nationals to leave yemen immediately. meanwhile the associated press learned in an exclusive interview with u.s. intelligence officials as many as 20,000 foreign fighters are pouring into syria and iraq to join isis and other terrorist groups. officials will testify before the house homeland security committee today that that estimated figure includes 150 americans. meanwhile president obama is set to ask congress to authorize the use of military force to fight isis over the next three years. for the first time, the president discussed the death of isis captive kayla mueller, and the government's position on ransom. >> my immediate reaction is heartbreak. i've been in touch with kayla's family. it's as tough as anything that i do having a conversation with

parents who understandably want by any means necessary for their children to be safe and we will do everything we can short of providing an incentive for future americans to -- >> nbc's joe fryer has more. >> reporter: emotions are strong in mueller's home town where relatives say they received a message from captors confirming her death. >> kayla has touched the heart of the world. the world grieves with us the world mourns with us. the world wants to be more like kayla, and if that is her legacy and the footprint she leaves on the world, a that is a wonderful thing. >> reporter: u.s. officials tell nbc news the family received a photograph of mueller that appeared to show her dead with trauma injuries but it's

difficult to determine the cause of death. in a statement mueller's parents say our hearts are breaking for our only daughter but we will continue on in peace, dig any and love for her. her family also released a letter handwritten by mueller last spring while she was in captivity. i have a lot of fight left inside of me she wrote. i am not breaking down and i will not give in no matter how long it takes. >> i am in solidarity with the syrian people. >> reporter: 26-year-old mueller was working for aid groups along the turkish syrian border when she was captured near aleppo in august 2013. in a statement president obama says no matter how long it takes, united states will find and bring to justice the terrorists who are responsible for kayla's captivity and death. >> that was nbc's joe fryer. it was three years ago today that muse irk icon whitney houston died. her daughter bobbi kristina remains in an atlanta hospital fighting for her life. her family is fighting back against a range of rumors about

her medical condition. they include this page six headline family to let bobbi kristina die on same day as whitney. us weekly saying relatives are saying she is progressing as god is hearing our prayers. an attorney for bobbi kristina's father issued this statement saying quote, the false reports that continue to appear in print and on the internet are egregious, false and will be dealt with at an appropriate time. this is a criminal investigation and the integrity of that process requires silence. the 21-year-old has been in a medically induced coma for the last ten days after she was found unresponsive in her bathtub. we want to bring you breaking news. nbc news decided tuesday to suspend brian williams as managing editor and anchor of "nbc nightly news" for six months without pay. the suspension is effective immediately, and lester holt will continue to anchor the nightly news. in a note to nbc staff, nbc news

president debra turness said while on nightly news friday january 30 2015 brian misrepresented events which occurred while he was covering the iraq war in 2003. it then became clear that on other occasions brian had done the same while telling that story in other venues. this was wrong and completely inappropriate for someone in brian's position. she went on to say this was a very hard decision. certainly there will be those who disagree but we believe this suspension is the appropriate and proportionate action. reaction is pouring in after comedy central's jon stewart announced last night hi plans to leave "the daily show" later this year. >> i don't have any specific plans. got a lot of ideas, got a lot of things in my head. i'm going to have dinner on a school night with my family who i have heard from multiple sources are lovely people.

>> well put and well deserved. celebrity law makeers and more are commenting on his departure. today host carson daly tweeted, wow, so bummed jon stewart is quitting "the daily show." elizabeth warren said washington is rigged for the big guys and no person has more consistently called them out for it than jon stewart. good luck jon. arby's tweeted, jon, feel free to reach out to us at careers@ar bys.com. in texas opening statements begin in the american sniper murder trial. navy s.e.a.l. chris kyle and his friend chad little field were shot to death in 2013. kyle's time in iraq is depicted in "american sniper wrash. eddie ray routh has admitted to killing the two men. he's a former marine. routh's attorney plans to deny the accusation of murder on the grounds of insanity and he suffered from post-traumatic distress from his time in iraq. if convicted, he faces life in

prison. in japan, some cherry flower power here. it is the cherry blossom festival a sign that spring is near. people come from all over to see the 60-year-old trees. nbc meteorologist bill karins is here. snow slammed boston, will we ever see signs of a cherry blossom? >> we're only to the middle of february. in washington, d.c., the famous cherry blossoms early april, late march. this is very early. maybe it's just parts of the south and a warm climate. it's not going to rainy time soon for many areas of the west. what we have in the barrel is what we have for the month so far. about two inches in san francisco, didn't atd add much yesterday. seattle 3 poichb 76 inches. we got the rain we needed in many areas of the northwest, but not the desert southwest. definitely not southern california. the warmth is going to be the

story. yesterday 78 in l.a. 83 in phoenix, typical this time of year with 50s in the northwest. still very warm for this time of year throughout the inner mountain west. it's been very difficult to get people to go to the slopes when it's been this warm throughout the rockies. this storm system is a miss. the last storm came into the area this one is riding back towards alaska. that means the high pressure is building in the west. that means the warmth is going to build along with your string of dry days throughout the region. this high pressure keeps the storms away. we will see dry weather and the warmth building. as far as the forecast is going to go areas like l.a. 87 to 86 87. this is very warm for this time of year. it's going to continue right through the u that's about the only

wet spot in the west. many other areas looking very nice. >> for probably the next week, two weeks, the western u.s. warm dry, while the east is cold and snowy. >> kind of all or none for us here. thank you very much bill. coming up could hackers turn on the camera of your company's cell phone and ease drov? breaking news in the shooting of a san diego tv sports director. you're watching "early today." this wednesday only... at kohl's presidents' day sale. find fun, new styles for the kids... like jumping beans tops and bottoms just $7.99 each. mom gets a little something fun too... with $7.99 graphic tees. and colorful spring bedding is 50 to 60% off. pick up some kohl's cash too... and use it the next time you shop. don't miss the wednesday only doorbusters... at kohl's presidents' day sale. get in for spring savings, kohls these little angels build in softness. and these little angels build in strength.

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♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ if you want it ♪ ♪ go out and get it ♪ i'm looking forward to "snl," i know some of the things they're going to do. >> still a few people that work at "snl" that i've never met. >> the oscars have nothing on "snl" 40. >> jimmy said it right there. don't miss the epic three-hour extravaganza celebrating 40 years of "snl," this sunday night at 8:00 7:00 central right here on nbc. breaking news overnight.

an arrest in the shooting of a san diego tv sports director. police say the so-called arm and dangerous suspect surrendered after a s.w.a.t. team surrounded his house in el cajon. kyle kraska was shot and transported to the hospital. police say he was alert and responsive. sources tell nbc new york rookie nypd officer indicted in shooting death of unarmed man in stairwell. the family of ak kai gurley who was shot in november say this is the first step in a fight for justice. official charges are expected to be unsealed later today. from nbc news.com, newthe right to rise pac says it was important for ethan to step away after tweets were uncovered that were offensive to women and gay people. i only hope my recent news won't

stop -- >> i resign my role at right to rise. best of luck to everyone there and i apologize in advance to whoever fills my position. in alabama a tug of war between state and federal decisions on gay marriage. ahead of thursday's hearing that could settle the issue once and for all. a growing number of judges are following the federal ruling to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. in an interview with buzzfeed president obama says he thinks the federal decision on gay marriage will eventually win out. talk about big money, tonight's estimated powerball jackpot is up to $485 million. by 2 time the winning numbers are drawn tonight that jackpot could easily exceed a half billion dollars. the way you think about cholesterol could soon change. the feds may ditch warnings on high cholesterol foods including our morning favorite bacon. the dietary guidelines advisory committee is behind the move.

the group says cholesterol in a diet shouldn't be considered a nutrient of concern, a big change from five years ago. that's when the rule with eat less than 300 milligrams per day of dietary cholesterol. that's about the amount of one egg. >> early today is brought to you by vagisil, the experts in intimate health. time to get down to business with landon downey. >> good morning to you. apple reaches new heights becoming the first company to ever end a trading day with the market value topping $700 billion. apple is already the world's largest publicly-traded company, continuing to benefit from record sales of the iphone 6 and 6 plus. if you use tinder match or eharmony on your company's smart phone, you could expose yourself and employers to hackers. they say they have medium or high security risk. hackers can send spam or install viruses and even remotely turn on the camera to eavesdrop on

conversations. checking the market stocks look to build on tuesday's gains after snapping two days of losses. investors slugging off concerns about bailout talks in greece. the dow and nasdaq and s&p 500 are back in the black for the year. look for earns from peps co-aol and time warner. back over to you. >> just ahead, an isis related terror plot stopped just in time. plus they were the little league team that melted your heart. now a stunning claim, accusations of cheating. sports is up next. strength anti-itch wipes relieve itch and odor instantly as they cleanse. so why wait to feel comfortable? trust vagisil. the number one wipe for itch. ♪ ♪ when you feel good no one is immune. with antioxidants, electrolytes, and b vitamins plus more vitamin c than ten oranges. emergen-c transforms more than just water. emergen-c. let your awesome out.

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this morning on "today," white house make over. jenna bush hager catches up with first lady michelle obama for an exclusive look at the family's newly remodeled dining room. in sports we start with a wild close one on the road. top ranked kentucky took on ls. and the tigers missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have given them the game. kentucky is 24-0 with a 74-69 win. coach was not happy with one called for a technical for hanging from the rim. >> carl decided to chin himself up. the reason i didn't call a time-out, i told them all, i hope they beat us. >> a little business strax,

right? calipari was criticizing him, so a little awkward there. >> on the ice you won't believe this shot. tim jax jackman ices one, takes a few bounces and right over the panthers goalie slips right in for the score. the panthers go on a win, 6-2. alex rodriguez met with jan keys officials to apologize for a see long long suspension for violating the drug agreement and labor contract. in a statement issued alex initiated the meeting an apologized to the organization for his actions over the past several years. there was an honest and frank discussion on all the issues. as far as the yankees are concerned, the next step is to play baseball in spring training. the u.s. little league champs are now under investigation. little league officials are investigating whether chicago's jackie robinson's west team recruited top players from neighboring districts, doing so violates the rule prohibiting the use of players who live

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taylor swift makes new friends. during a break at the grammys, swift is chatting it up with jay z and kanye. looks like she's dead set on nailing a meal with jay z. brunch brunch brunch. she wants to make it happen. he seems to kind of shake off with that request. last night jimmy fallon commented on the blockbuster "fifty shades of grey." >> pro, hearing someone's cell phone vibrate during the movie. con, that's not a cell phone. pro, it got two thumbs up. con, this is a family show so i

can't tell you where. finally, pro, telling everyone you saw it. con, hearing your grandma shout "no spoilers." >> the movie comes out on valentine's day. speaking of jimmy fallon. justin timer lake tweeted this picture of them working on "snl's" 40th anniversary. the show also announced miley cyrus is joining the special which airs this sunday. >> how epic do you think this is going to be? is this going to be one of those things that you can't miss? >> i think so. i think so. and the whole thing. you can't just watch parts of it. set the dvr, make some space. i'm francis rivera. this is "early today." we hope this is just your first stop of the day here on nbc. ♪ [epic music] ♪ introducing aleve pm... the pm pain reliever.

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leading the news from nbc news.com three sentenced for hate crime murder of black man in mississippi. james craig anderson was run over by a truck in june and the three men were given prison sentences from 50 to 7 years for their roles in the murder. prosecutors say he was targeted specifically for his race. in the "wall street journal," u.s. military to end african ebola role. today president obama is expected to announce he will bring back nearly the 1300 u.s. troops by april 30th. only 100 troops will remain to provide support for civilians still battling the disease. other stories we're following, two men in sydney

australia have been charged with planning a terror attack. police seized a home made isis flag a machete and a knife along with a terror video that reportedly showed one of the men making threats. in italy police have seized a painting attributed to leonardo davinchi. it was found in a bank fault in switzerland after an international investigation. tests will be done to determine if it is painting by davinchi. peyton manning is getting advice from his possible retirement from brett favre. he says manning should avoid asking himself "what if." if he feels like he can play he could. >> from the guy who unretired at least two or three times. >> how anticlimactic is that. a zoo in japan took on an escaped animal kind of. a staff member dressed up as a snow leopard. he was running around in the tokyo zoo, part of an annual drill to train the staff on what to do if a wild animal really

escaped. zoo visitors watched the drama unfold. a fake animal knocked over by a staff member guns pulled. he was eventually in the scenario, corn erd and shot with a tranquilizer. >> we'll hold a net up with our hands and stand right next to it that's the defense mechanism. >> it's a drill, if it happens, right? for a look ahead and a look back. the statue of former arizona senator barry goldwater will be dedicated in a ceremony at the capitol's statuariry hall. he was defeated in 1964 by lyndon johnson. nelson mandela was freed from a south african prison 25 years ago after serving 27 years. he would later be elected president of south africa: happy birthday to taylor lauter 23 jennifer anniston is 46 and actor burt reynolds is 79.

i'm francis rivera. thanks for watching

bullets fly. a woman shot in the neck while eating dinner at a south bay restaurant. plus a disturbing crime on the peninsula. someone is videotaping women while they're using a public bathroom. >> the bay area school board. >> a live look outside on this wednesday morning. it's february 11th. this is "today in the bay." >> from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." >> and we are midweek. good morning. it's wednesday at 4:30. i'm sam brock. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. lots to get to. let's check that forecast with meteorologist christina loren. >> we wan