stay right there, moreness on the way. the hours' long meeting aimed at reopening communication

lines, can they find a path to ease tensions between the two powers? israel raiding gaza's largest hospital. idf says guns and grenades found inside shows proof it is a hamas base. delivery drivers on high alert this holiday season. a troubling trend on the rise. groups of people ambushing and robbing delivery trucks right in the street as police search for suspects. > he's back. jimmy kimmel is ready to host the awards. get ready for a cruise summer. there's a taylor swift-themed cruise on the way. "early today" starts right now. good morning, i'm frances rivera. >> i'm phillip mena. there is new hope this morning about cooperation between the united states and china. following a year of rising

tensions, president biden spoke with his chinese counterpart for hours. mr. biden coming away from the summit saying the two have made real progress. alice barr kicks off our coverage. >> reporter: a potential reset in the fraught relationship between the world's two largest economies, after hours of talks between president biden and chinese president xi jinping. >> i believe they're some of the most productive discussions we've had. >> reporter: a central priority moving to restore critical military to military communications, the lack of a direct line for talks part of what made tensions spike when the u.s. shot down that chinese spy balloon earlier this year. >> we're reassuming military to military contact, direct contacts. >> reporter: but the president said he would take a trust but verify approach toward china, and when asked if he still considered president xi a dictator. >> he is. i mean, he's a dictator in the sense that here's a guy that run

as runs a country. >> reporter: taiwan and israel a main focus. the president said they need to be incredibly careful of civilians but noted. >> one thing has been established is that hamas does have headquarters. weapons, matier yell below this hospital, and i suspect others. >> reporter: the president announcing new steps on partnering to curb the deadly flow of fentanyl from china through mexico and into the u.s. >> we're >> it's going save lives. >> reporter: high stakes at world watches a critical relationship. alice alice barr, nbc news. tension scenes when a protest led to confrontation with police.

six officers sustained minor injuries after physically clashing with protesters at the rally outside the democratic national committee headquarters of the police used pepper spray to push the crowd back. one protester was arrested for assaulting a police officer. the group's jewish voice for peace and if not now were among the participants. as israeli forces continue their ground operation inside gaza, nbc news correspondent raf sanchez was embedded with the idf, witnessing a column of refugees being evacuated south. >> reporter: under the watchful eye of israeli troops, an exodus from gaza city is under way. children with their hands up. their parents clutching i.d. cards. the white flag flying amid the destruction. we've been covering this war for more than a month, but this is the first time we are seeing with our own eyes palestinian civilians inside gaza. this is what israel call as

humanitarian corridor, open a few hours each day for civilians to flee on foot and escape the fighting raging in gaza city. a quarter of a million palestinians have taken this route so far israel says, as a condition of access, nbc news agreed to blur some faces and submit raw footage to in the censors though not our final story. >> i think every jew and slowliy c can be proud of the fact that we're letting them out. >> reporter: for many palestinians, this feels like forced displacement. we asked the military. can you guarantee that these people will be able to return home one day? >> i think that is really going to be in the hands of a lot of different players. one of the main ones is hamas. >> reporter: soldiers call out in hebrew, in case hamas is smuggling hostages in the crowd. >> we ask the children, put your

arms up, put your arms up. we'll save you. don't worry. >> reporter: still no sign of the hostages. israel believes they're hidden in a network of tunnels. >> if were you to map out what this leads to, you would find our hostages. >> reporter: they found nothing in this tunnel, then they lower explosives. moments later palestinians heading into dust and despair. in las vegas, eight teenagers are facing murder charges after a deadly attack on a 17-year-old. miguel almaguer has the details. and we want to warn you, the video is disturbing. >> reporter: investigators say the swarm of high school students punched, kicked and stomped to death 17-year-old jonathan lewis, using viral videos of the brutal beating, police say they've identified eight of the victim's classmate

the, arresting the suspect between 13 and 17 years old for murder. >> what you see in the video is approximately ten tsubjects kicking, stomping and punching our victim jonathan as he's on the ground, not defending himself to the point that he's unconscious. >> reporter: left to die in this alley way, a passerby found him unresponsive and rushed him to the hospital. as police work to identify at least two other students. >> an incredible young man who loved life. >> reporter: lewis' father says his son was defending a smaller friend. >> it's just like absolutely, it looks like these kids have gone totally mad. >> reporter: police believe the fight was over stolen headphones and possibly a marijuana vape pen taken from the victim or his friend. investigators say the teens agreed to the back alley fight

after school. a brawl they say that ended in murder. calling what happened here void of humanity, police say the teenaged mob who pummel add classmate to death could soon be charged as adult. miguel almaguer, nbc news. now to an update in the case of the virginia teacher shot by a 6-year-old student. the child's mother, deja taylor, has been sentenced to 21 months in prison for using marijuana while own ing a firearm. police later found nearly an ounce of marijuana in her bedroom, along with drug paraphernalia. the 26-year-old still face as separate sentencing on felony child neglect. a teenager in iowa has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering his spa spanish teach. the 18-year-old and a friend beat the 66-year-old woman to death with a baseball bat. the motive? she had given them both a bad

grade. another teen, miller, got a similar sentence. new york has filed a first of its kind lawsuit against pepsi. letitia james says her office found much of the plastic waste along the river in new york was from pepsi products. she wants pep stoi psi to provi remedy. pepsi aims to have all of its packaging recyclable by 2025. . iceland is bracing for a volcanic eruption this morning. the country's meteorological office said they measured 800 earthquakes just yesterday alone. and that there's a significant likelihood after eruption in the coming days. the constant seismic activity has forced residents around the popular blue lagoon area to

evacuate. we've got flood alerts in florida once again. and the weekend weather is not looking much better up the coast. >> impressive rainfall across the state of florida yesterday. miami international airport receiving upwards of eight inches of rain. no surprise we've got all these folks under flood alerts this morning. where you see the green is a flood watch. where you see the rred over miad miami beach is a warning. the flood concern will remain through the morning commute. we know broward schools were closed. any additional rain is going to make the situation worse for folks there. and it's still falling with our radar sewing heavy rain just offshore for the keys and south florida. now we still have the potential for flash flooding today with impressive rainfall rates possible once again. but here's how it all plays out. we can see this new low start to

develop leer ahere and move up coast. we'll see the rain winding down as the later parts of the day get under way. but this system will workity way its way up the coast. this merges all this moisture o. 68 degrees in washington, d.c. today and 71 with plenty of sunshine in charleston. and that's a look at your forecasts, guys. back to you. coming up, a familiar face returns to host hollywood's biggest night. >>bu> t first, a troubling new trend. the grinches targeting delivery drivers.

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season picks up, delivery drivers across the country fear for their safety. it comes after reports of large groups ambushing delivery trucks and running off with packages. our mara barrett reports on this disturbing trend that could upend holiday deliveries. >> reporter: delivery drivers on edge after a string of robberies across the country caught on camera. in memphis, dozens of people surrounding this fedex truck as it was stuck in traffic, breaking the latch and ransacking the inside and running away with as many boxes as they could hold. even after the driver starts to pull away, thieves run after the truck, jump on it and take more boxes. in atlanta, an amazon worker returning from a delivery finds several suspects sprinting up to the truck, stealing packages from the back. these suspects using similar

tactics to stores ransacked in los angeles. this man hosts a memphis-based podcast. he says a robbery like this is unique. >> if i was a person actually working in that situation, being like, how is this person going to continue to work and feel like safe, and uno you know like safe, and uno y this might happen again. >> reporter: similar circumstances in washington, d.c. after a delivery driver was carjacked at gunpoint, the wheels stolen and the suspect still on the loose. >> we need these guys. this has got to stop. >> reporter: these shocking robberies ahead of what's expected to be a busy holiday shipping season. ship matrix estimates 82 million parcel as day will be out for delivery. nbc news told that safety of

drivers is a top priority. amazon says drivers receive deescalation training. the company writing in part about the atlanta robbery. we're glad the driver is okay. thankfully incidents like this are rare across this network. nonetheless, a single incident like this is one too many. >> and our thanks to mara barrett for that report. still to come, shirtless jason momoa is so 2011. see how he mixes things up. it contains a probiotic to help relieve occasional bloating, plus vitamin b12 to aid digestion. try align probiotic. looking for a bladder leak pad that keeps you dry? when i'm at work, i need to feel secured. what i'm looking for in a pad is, super thin, super absorbent. all of the things that you're looking for in a pad, that is always discreet. - this is thin. - my pad is thick. let's put it to the test. let's do it!

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same thing. he may be aquaman, but jason momoa is giving a flash for snl. he returns for his second stint as host alongside tait mccray. he did this about five years ago this team of year. >> mm-hm. and there is a lot going on. he's starting a vodka brand, too, with his best friend. along with everything else, aquaman, snl, a little vodka on the side. doesn't hurt. now to a new tale spun from the spider verse. >> you do ent thn't think this d how we're all connected? >> it's the least weird thing that's happened all day. >> dakota johnson has to untangle the connections between her and three women. it's the latest installment of films taking place in the world of spiderman.

it hits theaters on valentine's day. i am not sure if you saw sydney sweeney in there, too. a huge, huge name. outside of avengers, marvel. when if when it comes to spiderman, they can do movies that are not just spiderman. jimmy kimmel is joining the ranks of the oscar elites. he'll return as host next march. it will mark his fourth stint, tying him with other hosts, whoopee whoob whoopi goldberg and jack lemon. he's still behind bob hope. 19 in all. >> he said he's aldreamed of th

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be cheaper this year thanks to lower turkey prices. the average cost will be down $10 coming up on the "today" show, the eighth annual showdown, celebrity chefs will share their best recipes for pumpkin pie and other holiday classics. "early today" is back in a minute. this is not just a pharmacist. ♪♪ this is not just a refill. ♪♪ ♪♪ this is not just a delivery. ♪♪ this is being independent, together. ♪♪ walgreens lately, my skin seems dry and sensitive. my dermatologist recommended all free clear for my laundry.

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in the nation. >> reporter: she's been called the michael jordan of field hockey, propelling the tar heels to championship glory four times. and this year, erin madsen is hoping to make it happen again. except now in a new role. at 23 years old, madsen is the youngest head coach in all of division one sports. do you think about that? >> no, i think it's hard to ignore it. i had a head coaches meeting this morning and it r's funny t walk in a room and yes, i'm obviously the youngest one there. >> reporter: she asked for a shot at the job. >> i went to the athletic director, and i said i know coach is going to retire. when it opens up i don't want to be overlooked. >> reporter: i played field hock k y hockey in college.

>> i want them to feel self-confidence. >> reporter: players acknowledge there have been some quirks but say their existing relationship with madsen is an advantage. >> that was one of the first funniest moments like, do we have to call you coach? >> she's been able to understand us so well. >> reporter: and their nearly perfect record speaks for itself. the tar heels will play in the final four on friday. the fact that you're going to the final four in your first season, how does that feel? >> it's amazing. i'm just so proud of the team. >> reporter: nbc news, chapel hill, north carolina. >> so impressive. when you're good, you're good. when you're coach, you're coach, regardless of the number of your age. >> kudos to the athletic director. it's paid off. pay attention swifties. the trip of your wildest dreams

next october. a four-night taylor swift crucruise altho cruise. the ship will set sail froto th bahamas from miami. cruise of a lifetime. >> i was laughalfway expecting you ask for vacation time. i'm not>>

breaking right now at 5:00, only rubble remains. the investigation launched after a small plane taking off from the east bay crashed in san diego. the overnight revelations about the aircraft