and board time. they spent about an hour together before they today part ways. >> that is the cutest thing ever. >> great video. thanks for joining us. lester holt joins us now. on this monday night, the isis hit list. what we're learning about the american troops whose names and faces are on it, as u.s. forces are evacuated from a country on the brink of civil war. off and running. ted cruz making it official becoming the first major party candidate to jump in the race for president. a stunning turn in the campus rape investigation that sparked a national conversation. what police revealed today. danger on the tracks, including the film crew trapped with nowhere to run. tonight, the feds sounding the alarm about just how often tragedy strikes. and return to iwo jima. we're there with the american heroes 70 years later. "nightly news" begins right now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc

nightly news." reporting tonight, lester holt. good evening. given the horrors we've all witnessed from overseas these last several months, it is hard to imagine anything more chilling than having your name and face marked for death by isis here at home. it's the situation 100 u.s. military members found themselves in over the weekend. their photos and addresses posted online purportedly by an isis affiliate that urged followers to do them harm. tonight, what the military is telling those service members about how to protect themselves. we get the latest tonight from our pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski. >> reporter: it may be the first assault by isis on america's home front. a group calling itself the islamic state hacking division posted on the internet names, photos and home addresses of 100 u.s. military and urged isis sympathizers to hunt down the americans and kill them on u.s. soil.

>> it's a new front. it's a new sense of threat to the home base that we haven't seen before. >> reporter: the pentagon contacted all 100, informed them of the threat but offered no personal protection to them or their families. >> you just don't have enough resources to follow these threats or potential threats 24/7. and you just can't read their minds. >> reporter: instead service members are being advised to delete personal information and tighten up privacy settings on their social media websites. defense secretary ashton carter. >> we take the safety of our people very seriously. >> reporter: but ironically the pentagon itself may have inadvertently provided those identities to the terrorists. pentagon public affairs websites first posted the names and photos of at least 66 of those americans deployed to the war against isis with job descriptions like bomb squadron commander. defense officials say there's no intelligence indicating an actual

attack is imminent but consider the threat alone an act of terrorism. >> it's not just how many people you kill. it's this what you do to the psyche of people, this mental threat. >> reporter: officials here fear this may only be the first such internet assault by isis and that eventually some random lone wolf will be inspired to strike here in the u.s. lester. >> it's a disturbing thought. jim miklaszewski, thank you. there are fears tonight that isis now has its sights set on yemen. and while isis is not affiliated with the rebels who are pushing the country to the brink of civil war, the conflict is creating a dangerous power vacuum in the country and an opportunity for isis as american forces get out of the line of fire. nbc's richard engel has more on that. >> reporter: yemen's government is fighting for its life. rebels are battling their way towards the government's last stronghold, the city of aden. it's a government that's been a key u.s. ally in the fight against al qaeda in

yemen. but that country has gotten so dangerous that the u.s. has now withdrawn its military advisers, which means the u.s. will no longer have those eyes on the ground in yemen. nbc news has learned new details about the evacuation. a military official saying about 350 special ops, green berets and intelligence agents were air lifted out of yemen leaving on multiple c-17 aircraft from two locations on friday and saturday nights. classified materials were destroyed along with millions of dollars worth of equipment to keep them from falling into enemy hands. it's being described as a successful evacuation. but now the u.s. won't have nearly the same ability to coordinate targeting for america's largely secret drone war against al qaeda in yemen. >> we lost the ability to get the kind of intelligence we need to strike at various insurgent and extremist targets without having collateral damage and civilian casualties.

>> reporter: yemen joins a growing and alarming list of failed states where al qaeda and now isis have room to grow. in large areas of iraq and syria, most of somalia and libya, now yemen, the dominos seem to be falling. the war in yemen could drag on for months if not longer. to give you an idea, lester, how volatile it is, the u.s.-backed yemeni president, he was considering getting on one of those american planes and leaving with the u.s. military advisers. in fact, the military advisers thought the yemeni president was going to get on the plane with them until the very last moment when he decided to stay and stick it out. >> all right. richard engel. richard, thank you. a big day for the race for the white house in 2016. for as long as we've been talking about it with potential candidates out there raising money, today republican senator ted cruz of texas became the first major party candidate to officially enter the race. nbc's kelly o'donnell is on the trail.

>> reporter: with towering big screens and concert-style staging. >> it is the time for truth. it is a time for liberty. >> reporter: texas senator ted cruz used no notes or teleprompter but delivered 30 minutes of fire. >> i believe in you. i believe in the power of millions of courageous conservatives. >> reporter: more than 10,000 students were here as a required part of the regular class schedule at the evangelical christian liberty university. senator cruz, how are you feeling after making the announcement? >> invigorated. >> reporter: cruz actually jumped in after midnight declaring by tweet and with a video release. >> and i'm ready to stand with you to lead the fight. >> reporter: cruz is courting an influential base of republican voters. can you go beyond the base of republican supporters?

>> these are commonsense principles, the principles i'm fighting for. live within your means. don't bankrupt our kids and grandkids, follow the constitution. >> reporter: though born in canada, cruz is eligible to run for president as a natural born citizen because his mother is american born. father of two little girls, wife heidi will take a break from her investment banking job at goldman sachs in houston to campaign. today, cruz found respect for some with differing views. >> i consider myself a liberal, a progressive. i do not agree with many of the things that he said. >> reporter: others admire his brash style. >> thank god, he fights too much in washington. it's exactly what we need. >> reporter: now candidate cruz will head off to fund-raise tomorrow. kelly o'donnell, nbc news, lynchburg, virginia. >> and this programming note, ted cruz and his wife heidi will appear live tomorrow morning on "today," their first interview together since his announcement. we have an update tonight on the story that prompted an apology from "rolling stone" after the magazine reported on an alleged gang rape at the university of virginia. following months of

investigation, police announced their findings in the case today and found nothing back up the magazine's original reporting. nbc's gabe gutierrez follows up. >> reporter: it was the story that rocked the university of virginia and sparked a national conversation about sexual assault. today, police said they found no evidence that it was true and have suspended the investigation. >> that doesn't mean that something terrible did not happen to jackie. we are just not able to gather sufficient facts to conclude what that something may have been. >> reporter: the lengthy "rolling stone" magazine article was published back in november, a woman the magazine called jackie claimed she was gang raped in 2012 by seven men at the phi kappa psi house. were you able to ever find the student, the fraternity member who allegedly orchestrated this attack? >> no, we weren't.

>> reporter: charlottesville police chief said jackie did not cooperate with the rape investigation. the shocking story initially led university officials to halt all greek activities. but soon jackie's friends began to raise doubts. >> she said there were five men. the "rolling stone" article reported seven. >> reporter: "rolling stone" apologized to its readers, saying there now appear to be discrepancies on jackie's account. on uva's campus some students worry the discredited story will have a chilling effect on future victims. >> these doors we begin to open for women to speak out are perhaps getting slammed even harder. >> reporter: tonight phi kappa psi is now exploring its legal options to address the extensive damage caused by "rolling stone." for its part, "rolling stone" will only say it expects the independent investigation into that article conducted by columbia university's journalism school to be published within the next few weeks. lester. >> gabe, thank you. robert durst, the

real estate heir accused of murder, appeared in a louisiana courtroom today as a judge ordered him held without bond deeming him a dangerous flight risk. and tonight we're learning about one of the cold cases that has generated renewed interest. it involves a missing college student who disappeared in the town while durst had a business there long ago. nbc's stephanie gosk reports. >> reporter: robert durst is charged with two counts of weapons possession in new orleans. not nearly as serious as the charge that he killed susan berman 15 years ago in los angeles. but serious enough to carry a sentence of 15 to 20 years without parole. >> obviously a very, very serious charge as you well know. >> reporter: today the judge ordered durst held without bail, calling him a flight risk. his lead defense attorney thinks there's more to it. >> maybe louisiana wants a bite of the publicity pie. that's number one. but the other thing is the longer he's out there, the longer it is before california has to give up to us what they've got. >> reporter: durst skipped bail in 2001

after being charged with murder in texas. a jury later found him not guilty. prosecutors say he used as many as ten aliases including one to check into the hotel where he was arrested. in his room authorities say, there was a mask with salt and pepper hair not meant for trick-or-treating. more than $42,000, with information for a package containing another $117,000. and a map of the region, which prosecutors pointed out includes cuba. durst walked into court today looking frail, his head shaven and a visible scar from brain surgery. his lawyers say they want to contest the original arrest warrant for murder say it's based on a documentary and not real evidence. durst was arrested for the murder of susan berman the night before hbo aired the final installment of "the jinx." the real estate heir says he didn't do it, but getting a chance to defend himself in a los angeles court may take a while. the cold case getting

new attention is over 40 years old. in middlebury vermont, in 1971 a college student 18 years old went missing. durst had a health food store at the time. authorities say they've known about the link. they're asking anyone with any information to get in touch. lester. >> stephanie gosk, thank you. it may say spring on the calendar, but winter won't release its grip on the midwest. parts of chicago getting half a foot of snow today making for some very treacherous conditions on the road. schools were closed in parts of minnesota and southern wisconsin where some areas got as much as 15 inches of snow overnight. in raleigh, north carolina, authorities say three people were killed and another injured when scaffolding collapsed at a high-rise construction site crashing down on a parking lot below. an investigation is underway to determine what caused the collapse. here in new york there is an immense feeling of anguish and loss. seven children, all of them brothers and sisters from the same family, killed in a horrific fire over the weekend. today, their father watched over them as

they were laid to rest in israel. nbc's rehema ellis has more for us. >> reporter: the faces of the mourners said it all. friends and relatives of the sassoon family gathered in jerusalem today to say good-bye to seven children. gabriel sassoon, their father, cried and prayed for his three girls and four boys who died in weekend in a raging fire at their new york home. from 16-year-old eliane to 5-year-old yaakob, he wanted them all to be happy. he described them all as pure beautiful roses. the rabbi says they're now flowers in god's garden. over the weekend thousands of the family's orthodox jewish neighborhood gathered to pay their respects. >> it's really heartbreaking. i really hope that those beautiful angels rest in peace. >> reporter: neighbors say their mother tried desperately to get help for her children trapped inside after she'd jumped out of a

second story window with their only surviving child. both remain in critical condition. investigators believe the fire was caused by a malfunctioning hot plate left on for the jewish sabbath when the observant do not turn electricity on or off. no working smoke detectors were found on the first or second floor, which officials say could have made the difference between life and death. >> we wouldn't be talking about this today. they'd be talking about losing their home perhaps but not their family. >> reporter: tonight, seven children lost, a family and community in mourning. rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. still ahead here tonight, danger on the tracks like the freight train barreling toward a film crew with no way to escape. a heart-stopping accident caught on camera and a new warning about how many people are getting hit. also the story behind the image so many people are sharing. a woman on a mission and a police officer who helped her realize her dream.

the national transportation safety board is set to convene a special hearing into the high number of pedestrians who are killed on railroad tracks each year. they include kids walking home from school, people walking to work and even a film crew shooting a movie on the tracks, a tragedy caught on camera. nbc's tom costello reports. >> reporter: in georgia the chilling final moments of a film crew trespassing on a trestle seconds before a freight train plowed through killing

27-year-old sarah jones. >> what's going on? >> well, someone got hit by a train. >> reporter: the film's director randall miller now sentenced to ten years for involuntary manslaughter. in indiana 13-year-old jeffrey billinger killed after taking a shortcut from school across nearby tracks. also in indiana a close call for these two women who somehow survived being run over by a train. the ntsb says train accidents involving pedestrians jumped sharply last year with 945 people struck by trains, two to three every day, and more than 500 killed. >> beautiful girl. talented. smart. my guess is she froze. >> reporter: walter gaffney's 17-year-old daughter mary was killed while walking down the tracks wearing headphones. as the signs warn, trespassing is illegal, but over several hours in maryland this morning we watched more than half a dozen people cut across the tracks. some listening to music, some on the phone, others dodging between cars. >> it's not the safest thing to do. >> reporter: why do you do it? >> impatience.

you know, i'm off, i'm trying to go home. >> reporter: now the ntsb is looking at ways to keep people off the rails. but there's roughly 200,000 miles of railroad track in this country. fencing it all off and maintaining it simply isn't practical. >> people think that surely i'll hear a train coming but people don't hear the trains, and they get struck and they get killed. >> reporter: the safety reminder tonight, tracks are for trains not pedestrians and not a playground. tom costello, nbc news, beltsville, maryland. we're back in a moment with a game changing announcement from the nfl. something a lot of fans have been hoping for for years. a big win for nfl

a big win for nfl fans who don't want to pay nfl ticket prices. the league is suspending its tv blackout policy which blocked local stations from broadcasting games if there weren't enough tickets sold. the nfl also announced plans to broadcast a regular season game worldwide over the internet for the first time ever. there were

superheroes at 1600 pennsylvania avenue today. the annual white house science fair where president obama appeared to be quite impressed by a group of cape-wearing girl scouts from tulsa, oklahoma. the girls showed the president the page-turning robot they built out of legos designed to help the disabled. pretty neat stuff. in louisville, kentucky, a story of compassion and determination. asia ford, who has lost about 200 pounds in two years, was running a 10-k race. suddenly she felt sick and dizzy. rather than quitting she pushed ahead but not by herself. a police officer grabbed hold of asia, told her, we're going to do this together and helped her walk the final two miles across the finish line. when we come back, our journey to iwo jima 70 years later, the men who fought and won.

the pacific island of iwo jima is only eight square miles, yet the battle for it proved to be one of the bloodiest of world war ii. it was 70 years ago this week that american forces finally captured iwo jima from dug-in japanese forces after weeks of fighting and thousands of lives lost. this weekend surviving veterans returned to iwo perhaps for the last time. and nbc's harry smith

went with them. >> reporter: it's been a lifetime since some of these old marines were last in iwo jima but there is no forgetting the fight. iwo jima veteran john lauriello. >> anybody that survived is damn lucky. there's no other explanation for it surviving that thing. >> reporter: the marines came ashore on this beach and encountered less resistance than they expected, but as more and more marines accumulated here, they started to climb these berms. that's when all hell broke loose. by sea and air the island had been bombarded for days. it was supposed to be quick work remembers navy corpsman leo. >> thought it was going to be a piece of cake. it didn't turn out to be that way. >> reporter: more than 2,000 americans were killed or wounded the first day. as casualties mounted, the marines made it to the summit of mt. suribachi on day five

where joe rosen maltook the famous photograph. saturday the veterans and their families raised flags at the same spot, proud of their service -- >> thank you very much, sir. >> reporter: -- and humbled by the sacrifice of those who didn't make it. >> if we never raised the flag on mt. suribachi, we probably never would have heard of iwo jima. >> reporter: woody williams is the lone survivor of the 27 medal of honor recipients of iwo jima. >> it not only lifted our spirits here on this rock, it lifted the spirits of america. >> reporter: but the brutal fighting here would continue for more than a month. retired general lawrence snowden was a 23-year-old rifle company captain who lost more than half his men here. >> i don't mind telling you i cried. nothing wrong with a real man crying real tears. and i did. but those kinds of things, i don't care how many years go by 70, 106, i can't wipe out memories like that.

>> reporter: and as the old men pass, it falls to us to keep their memories alive. harry smith, nbc news, iwo jima. and that will do it for us on this monday night. i'm lester holt. for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching, and good night. right now at 6:00 crushed in her car. a woman dies after a freak construction accident. a gravel truck tipped over onto her car as she attempts to move it. good evening. >> not only a freak accident, but gruesome. for nearly five hours now, police firefighters and construction crews have been trying to right that gravel truck that tipped over. witnesses describe people digging into the rubble by hand

trying to rescue the woman who was crushed to death. we are in martinez this evening. terry, we know now her 4-year-old daughter witnessed this accident. what are the details here? >> reporter: right now, you can see a fire truck. really the purpose is to block the media's view and everybody's view as they try to cut into the car and remove the woman's body from the front seat of her vehicle that was in the driveway of the house you see there. the truck just to the right of the fire truck still exactly where it was about 1:00 this afternoon when this tragedy unfolded. take a look at video of the overturned trailer. about 1:00 this afternoon, a truck delivering gravel to is this construction project for jjr construction. its trailer with a load of gravel was lifting up almost to its peak. the driver tells me he saw the car with its nose