breaking overnight, protests

pour into the streets of israel after the bodies of six hostages are found in gaza. among them, an american. we have a live report with the latest details. here at home, vice president kamala harris weighing in for the first time on donald trump's controversial visit to arlington national cemetery. what the white house hopeful is saying. thousands of hotel workers off the job this morning in the middle of the holiday rush. what they're striking for and how long it could last. how one california program is giving formerly incarcerated people a lift with a simple ride home. and a heartwarming moment when one little boy got to tell his nurses about a life-saving update. it's labor day. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm frances rivera. we begin in israel where a general strike is under way this morning, pushing for a ceasefire deal with hamas. the mobilization comes as six more hostages were found dead in

gaza, including an israeli american. hundreds of thousands of israelis took to the streets, putting pressure on the netanyahu government to compromise. for the latest, let's go to claudio lavanga who is following developments. good morning, claudio. what do we know about the hostages? >> good morning, frances. the israeli army says the bodies of the six hostages were found in a tunnel under rafah, and that they were killed before the israeli soldiers could reach them. now they were found about half a mile from another tunnel where another hostage was found alive last week while leading to the assumption that their captors felt them as they felt the israeli soldiers were closing in. now as you mention, one of the dead hostages is an israeli american, hersh goldberg-polin. now he was kidnapped october 7th from that nova music festival, sparking condemnation from the biden administration, with

president biden pledging that the hamas leaders will pay for this crime. and vice president kamala harris saying or calling hamas a terrorist organization that now has even more american blood on their hands. now as you mentioned, the news of the death of the six hostages sparked yet another protest on israel on sunday. about half a million people took to the streets of israel for the protest organized by the families of the hostages who are demanding once again that a ceasefire and hostage deal should be reached as soon as possible. now on that point, president biden and vice president harris are expected today to meet with the negotiating team to find a way to accelerate the process even though the positions by israel and hamas seem to be very still very distant with little or no space for compromise. back to you, frances. >> claudio, thank you for the update. kremlin officials say

ukraine launched waves of drones targeting power plants and a refinery deep inside russia, this on the ground video obtained by reuters shows the moment the moscow oil refinery was struck sunday. russia claims to have destroyed all the drones deployed across the country, but debris from the shoot-down still caused major damage. reuters could not independently identify the reports and there was no immediate comment from ukraine. let's turn to the latest in the race for the white house. vice president harris is going on a labor day battleground blitz. stops are planned for michigan and wisconsin, and a rare joint appearance with president biden in pennsylvania. former president trump will hold a town hall in pennsylvania on wednesday. it comes as new questions arise about mr. trump's visit to arlington national cemetery last week. here is gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: the controversy over former president trump's visit to arlington national cemetery has

reignited. vice president harris slamming him for disrespecting sacred ground all for the sake of a political stunt. she's calling the cemetery a solemn place and not a place for politics. >> we lost 13 great, great people. >> reporter: it's her first time weighing in after the trump campaign posted this highlight video on tiktok showing the former president laying a wreath in honor of the service members killed during the chaotic military withdrawal from afghanistan. a cemetery spokesperson said federal law prohibits campaign-related activity there. >> mr. president what did you think of former president trump's behavior at arlington national cemetery with the visit to for the fallen soldiers? >> i don't want to answer and things. they may tell you what i think. >> reporter: on social media, former president trump posted a series of videos from gold star families criticizing the biden administration. >> you have been nothing but disrespectful to me and the families of the 13. >> we invited president trump. we are the ones that asked for the video and the pictures to be taken. >> reporter: even though the u.s. troop withdrawal from afghanistan was negotiated with

the taliban during the trump administration, the former president blames the biden white house for its poor execution. >> joe biden killed those young people because he was incompetent and then they tell me that i used their graves for public relation services, and i didn't. >> reporter: in an interview with nbc news last week, trump insisted he knew nothing about the video that was shared on tiktok, and said the gold star families had invited him. >> you know who the families also invited? joe biden and kamala harris. where were they? joe biden was sitting on a beach and kamala harris was in her mansion in washington, d.c. >> reporter: a white house official and aide denies the president or vice president were ever invited. >> and our thanks to gabe for that report. a terrifying scene caught on camera just outside of portland, oregon. a small airplane crashing into a town house, setting the block on fire. at least three people are dead. here is dana griffin.

>> reporter: this was the terrifying aftermath. >> we think that an airplane crashed into the house. >> reporter: a row of townhomes just outside portland, oregon, goes up in flames. look as the plane crash is caught on camera, a huge fireball rises above the neighborhood. >> i did see the pilot start veering to the left, like, very hard. >> the plane must be buried in between these three condos. there's no sign of it out here. >> reporter: john sampson was there when the cessna went down killing the pilot and passenger. >> there was a huge explosion that pretty much rocked the whole area. >> reporter: the fire jumping from home to home as firefighters worked frantically to douse the flames. one resident was killed, authorities say. the shocking moment heard on radio traffic with the troutdale airport control tower just two miles from the crash site. >> crash, crash, crash. big black smoke in a residential area. >> tower confirming you are reporting a plane crash?

>> that's affirmative. and it was a twin, a twin aircraft. >> reporter: investigators say there was no may day call. what do you make of that? >> there was no may day call perhaps because the pilot didn't feel it was an emergency situation. the pilot did admit to air traffic that he was having handling problems and this was a test flight. >> reporter: the ntsb is moving the plane to a secure facility as they piece together what went wrong. five families are now displaced from a crash no one saw coming. dana griffin, nbc news. this labor day weekend has been packed flights and long lines at airports. the tsa expects 17 million passengers to fly through this wednesday. but the weekend got off to a rough start thanks to severe weather. there were more than 450 flight cancellations in the u.s. on friday, and then another 400 over the next few days. so a lot of people heading home today. we have the cookouts so, will the rain put a damper on your labor day plans? michelle grossman has your

holiday forecast. good morning, frances. so good to see you. it's all about location. in the northeast, feeling a little bit like fall. september temperatures, and then to the south, we're looking at some showers and storms. the west will be heating up. let's start with the south because we have a front that is kind of lingering. it's parked in place. we have an area of low pressure that's going pump in tropical moisture. that's going bring rainfall rates 2 to 3 inches per hour. very soggy along the south. we'll see the chance of storms stretching from texas all the way to the carolinas. that flash flood threat continues through tuesday and even later during the week. in houston and tampa, could see possible delays also in dallas, new orleans and the carolinas as well, charlotte, atlanta, down to orlando, because we're going see rain in the southeast as well. so for today, if you're on the roadways, we're looking at i-10, i-20 along the south. and the carolinas from florida to the carolinas. could see slowdowns as well. this is why. there is that front, that area of low pressure that slow lowe

is going to sit in the gulf, pumping in the tropical moisture. could get a name. it doesn't matter. we're looking at heavy rain. 2 to 3 inches per hour. so the flash flood threat does continue. 2 to 3 inches in some spots where you see the darker colors. also looking at the west heating up. we do have heat alerts, heat warnings throughout the southwest. robably not happening there. 90 in san antonio. all right. that's your monday forecast. >> okay, thank you so much, michelle. >> sure. crews continue to battle a wildfire burning in jackson, wyoming. what's known at the fish creek fire was ignited by a lightning strike over two weeks ago, and it has burned roughly 13,000

acres. it is burning in a remote area, but the heavy smoke is impacting nearby roadways. as of the last update, it is over 40% contained. "early today" is back in a minute with a hotel workers strike throwing a wrench in holiday plans. holiday plans. and an update on a inez, let me ask you, you're using head & shoulders, right? only when i see flakes. then i switch back to my regular shampoo. you should use it every wash, otherwise the flakes will come back. he's right, you know. is that tiny troy? the ingredients in head & shoulders keep the microbes that cause flakes at bay. microbes, really? they're always on your scalp... but good news, there's no itchiness, dryness or flakes down here. i love tiny troy. and his tiny gorgeous hair. make every wash count! and for stubborn dandruff, try head & shoulders clinical strength. upset stomach iberogast indigestion iberogast bloating iberogast thanks to a unique combination of herbs, iberogast helps relieve six digestive symptoms to help you feel better. six digestive symptoms.

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alone in san francisco's union square when a 17-year-old pulled a gun op him. police say both pearsall and the suspect were shot. pearsall's mom says her son is in good spirits now that the bullet missed his vital organs. the music community is mourning the loss of fat man scoop. she was performing a concert when he suffered a medical emergency and collapsed on stage born isaac freeman iii he was widely known for his hit be faithful along with collaborations with missy elliott and mic mariah carey. his family called him a world las performer and a beacon of light. he was 53 years old. still to come, the program helping formerly incarcerated people. they map out a better future after getting out of prison. and the growing feud between disney and directv pulli espnng (vo) your bones are 4 times as strong as concrete.

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we're back now with the program helping to steer formerly incarcerated people toward a better future, and it all starts with a ride home. here is nbcu academy reporter with the details. >> yeah, i know. >> how you feeling? >> i feel really good. >> yeah? >> you know why. >> reporter: carlos servants spends thousands of hours on the road with formerly incarcerated people every year. he does it as part of the anti-recidivism coalition free ride home program which picks up individuals who had been in prison. he guides them through their first hours of freedom. >> we started this program because we wanted to make sure that people get treated with an open heart. >> reporter: carlos spent 11 years in prison, believes success begins with the ride home. the california-based program has given 17,000 rides to men and

women and has traveled over 80,000 miles across the state since its creation in 2018. >> i know that they've endured a lot of pain, suffering. and now for us, the right thing to do is to make sure that they have someone who is going to greet them as family. >> reporter: the program's mission is for riders to continue their relationship with the coalition after the ride is over to reach out for support and mentorship. edward lee still remembers his ride home in 2021. >> it was like a dream. you caught up in the clouds and the fog where you can't believe it. so you ride home, seeing things, cars moving fast. it's become a reality because it is a reality. >> reporter: the program gave him so much that he decided to become a driver himself. jose norrington also received a ride home three years ago and now works as a development coordinator at the coalition. he says he wouldn't be where he is today without the time he spent in the car with carlos. >> for me, being able to walk

into a white collar world and do the things in a professional setting and be able to be a face and being able to represent something, represent my story, represent their story, that was just kept me going. and it keeps me going today. >> reporter: the support system that the coalition provides becomes a family to many. >> my emphasis is you come to your seat, this is your house. you're going to get the support. you're going to get the resources. but ultimately, you're going get an opportunity to transition back into the community safely. >> whatever you need from us, we're here to provide that support. >> reporter: i followed a ride home carlos gave to pedro, who served 24 years at a correctional training facility in soledad, california. pedro said i was happy when i heard he was coming to get me. i said finally it's happening. >> we take them for their first meal. for us, whatever you decide, whether it's steak and lobster, whether it's a wingstop, whether it's a mcdonald's and a cheeseburger. >> a double cheeseburger is exactly what pedro wanted. >> we take them shopping.

we want to make sure they get rid of whatever they've been wearing for x amount of time and get a fresh set of clothing, you know, get some hygiene, some toiletries, get a cell phone. when you have someone that is standing in your shoes and they've accomplished so much, they too want to live up to that standard. >> reporter: pedro said one thing is good when they're living their life, and now i know my life is going to be like from now on. it won't be like before. having grown to over 100 staff and volunteers, the program plans to ease even more citizens back into a changed world. >> you have some people as soon as they come home, as soon as they're out, you can see the boulders have been dropping from their body. and now they can see freedom. >> a free award winning program focused on advancing careers in journalism, media and tech. for more on the story, explore the storytellers section of nbcu

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the show is for people 12 years old and older and is a protein-based instead of an mrma vaccine. nasa announced the spacecraft will return leaving the international space station on friday and is set to land saturday at white sands space harbor in new mexico. and the olympics live on in paris. the city's decided to keep the olympic rings on the eiffel tower while the fate of the olympic cauldron is still unclear. that decision will be up to the that decision will be up to the french p what's up, you seem kinda sluggish today. things aren't really movin'. you could use some metamucil. metamucil's psyllium fiber helps keep your digestive system moving so you can feel lighter and more energetic. metamucil keeps you movin'. and try fizzing fiber plus vitamins. it ain't my dad's razor, dad. ay watch it! it's from gillettelabs. this green bar releases trapped hairs from my face... gamechanga! ...while the flexdisc contours to it. so the five blades can get virtually every hair in one stroke. for the ultimate gillette shaving experience.

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the little boy who couldn't wait to tell the world about a life-saving update. >> hey! >> hey! >> i'm getting a new heart! >> this is the moment of joy when 6-year-old john henry lee finally got to share his good news with staff at the cleveland clinic. >> phyllis, i'm getting a new heart! >> what? oh, my goodness! >> there he is, making the rounds this spring with mom, sarah. >> i am so happy for you! >> giving hugs and lots of love to the nurses and doctors who have been by his side for years. >> i'm getting a new heart! [ laughter ] >> a celebration for the brave little boy born with a rare heart condition who has been in and out of the hospital his whole life. >> he was, like, wait. we have to go tell everybody and i was, like, we have to go tell everybody? he's, like, yeah. let's go! >> i'm getting a new heart! >> yay! >> a proud moment for nurses like laura bartock who says john henry is her inspiration.

>> i think what we can learn from john henry's attitude is realize the bigger picture of what's going on in life. we may have bad days, but these kids have to live in a hospital, and they're still seeing the good side of life and they're still idealistic and they're still hopeful. >> then in may john henry finally got that heart going through surgery and months of rehab. [ cheering ] >> before an emotional sendoff this summer. [ cheering ] >> congratulations. you take care of your mommy, okay? >> everyone did this together. it's not one person did this. this is a whole community worth of people that took care of him in order to get him where he is today. >> bye, cleveland clinic! >> reporter: now back home with his family. >> can i play outside? >> and spreading the world about the life-saving gift of organ donation. >> organ donation has about

given my son a second chance of life. without organ donation he wouldn't be able to be a kid, you know? and he's a kid again. [ cheering ] >> it's, like, he has a second chance at life now. >> adorable and precious. our thanks to hallie for sharing that story. coming up on "today," embracing a once dreaded rite of passage, the growing trend of young people creating their own braces. why dental professionals are sounding the alarm that it could be a recipe for disaster. we'll explain, ahead on "today." and thanks for watching "early today." i'm frances rivera. have a great and safe labor day. hope to see you back with me early tomorrow morning. have a gooone.d

breaking overnight,