either. my magic 8-ball is at the cleaners. the important thing to know is neither us, here, nor the u.s. government nor anybody else in the region knows how this works out in the end. keep watching. good wednesday morning. right now, on "first look." did the u.s. strike prevent a terror plot from being executed on american soil? >> want to say thank you to all of you. this is not the end of an effort. but is rather, a beginning. i'm confident we have a partnership that's representative here that will be able to be successful. >> president obama thanks his arab partners. but what damage did our air strikes have on i.s.i.s.? and bob costas weighs in on domestic violence in the nfl. >> nfl players are involved in criminal activity much less than the general population. and he predicts a major turning

point. and a shoot-out of epic proportion. and an activity that can be described as simply spectacular. good morning to you. i'm fran cyst revecis rivera. we started the war on terror. he is the boss of the terror squad is small. just under 50 soldiers. but the specialty is so frightening, it has the u.s. worried. here's nbc's richard engel. >> reporter: it's a crowded battlefield in syria. with dozens, perhaps hundreds of extremist groups, drawing members from across the world. they fight against the assad regime. and against each other. the group is just one of them. it's a splinter group of al qaeda, which moved to syria, to locate and recruit westerners, among the thousands of foreign fighters in the country. the group is considered a threat to the u.s. because american intelligence say it wants to

bring down airplanes with explosives. a dramatic al qaeda objective. the leader is this man, suhsin spirs al-fadhli. he was a top aid to osama bin laden, said to with one of the few people to know about 9/11, before the attacks. now, al-fadhli and his organization are under attack. so is i.s.i.s. and there's many more in syria just like them. >> that was richard engel reporting. a lot of moving parts this morning in the war on terror. let's bring in jim maceda from our london bureau. we have breaking news. reports of new air strikes inside syria. >> good morning, francis. that's right. according to syrian monitoring agency, on the ground, a reliable one. two more air strikes took place. near the syrian border with

iraq. and the second, near the turkish border overnight, striking next to that syrian kurdish town. at the heart of a fierce battle, as i.s.i.s. tries to take control of that border area. as many as 150,000 kurdish refugees have reportedly fled the fighting there. and it appears, the fighter planes that were used were not syrian, which would suggest these were coalition strikes. >> now, a group that is very powerful. u.s. intel says the threat was eminent. just how close? >> they were getting close. and imminent can mean sooner rather than later. u.s. officials were concerned about this group of hardened al qaeda veterans of pakistan, afghanistan, and chechnya.

they were recruiting members to blow up a commercial planes. some say that it was not necessarily about to launch an attack on a specific target. why it may be new to us and most americans, it's been watched carefully for about two years now. there was good intel on the group. at least 50 fighters, according to that reliable monitor on the ground, were killed in the cruise missile strikes. u.s. officials confirming that the attack was more of a target of opportunity. running parallel with the strikes on i.s.i.s. back to you. >> i.s.i.s., the world watching. thanks, jim maceda for us out of london. president, presidetoday, pr take the fight to the u.s. general assembly. the president is expected to

press the security council for action on limiting the travel of foreign fighters. nbc's tracie potts joins me live from washington. good morning. it could be an important day for rallying the world against i.s.i.s. >> reporter: it will be, francis. and we're watching a couple of events that the president has in new york today, with the united nations. this is rally his big chance to make his case that the u.s. needs some help fighting i.s.i.s. and other terrorist groups. >> i will never apologize for doing everything in my power to protect the safety and security of the american people. >> reporter: speaking to the united nations this morning, president obama will urge other countries to join the fight. >> thank you very much. for everything that you have done. >> reporter: he is thanking the arab nations that helped with air strikes in syria. lawmakers say air strikes alone are not enough. >> he should not be ruling out

boots on the ground. ultimately, that's going to be required. >> reporter: this afternoon, the president chairs a u.n. security council meeting, focused on stopping foreign terrorists from crossing borders. >> fighters from our own communities. and radicalized to go fight in wars that are not their own. >> reporter: the campaign is also targeting an al qaeda-linked group. the pentagon says they were ready to attack. >> these strikes were undertaken to disrupt plotting against the united states and western targets. >> reporter: military officials warn that air strikes are just the beginning. >> i think in terms of years. >> reporter: they admit, i.s.i.s. is well-funded. they'll regroup. and the concern is, they might also retaliate. the u.s. on standby for that. >> tracie potts for us in washington, d.c. we're learning more about the man police believe was the last person seen with missing

university of virginia student, hannah graham. he's been on the run since saturday, when he sped away from police. and now, police say nbc news has learned that matthew, was a part-time volunteer at a private school. now, that school has informed parents he, quote, will no longer be working with the football program. police insist they're actively searching for the missing 18-year-old, last seen by her friends nearly two weeks ago. time to bring you the latest with sports this morning. the fall classic is starting to take shape, with another team clinching a playoff spot. the pirates beat the braves, 3-2. they grab a wild card spot. it is the bucs' 11th win in 13 games. and look. you know they know how to celebrate. and to soccer. an incredible finish between liverpool and middlesborough.

it was 2-2, in extra time. came down the penalty kicks. but 30 penalty kicks that lasted in a marathon shoot-out. an amazing 27 penalties were converted before liverpool prevailed, 14-13, in the league cup. that's something else. little league world series mo'ne davis is donating her game one jersey when she pitched a two-game shutout. becoming the first girl to win at the little league world series. derek jeter has been showered with all kinds of gifts. what's he going to do with all of those? they're free. and they're considered free gifts. may come with a hefty price tag. those gifts, they're worth $33,000. jeter could end up owing about $16,000 in state and federal taxes. >> he could find that in his couch. >> of course, he can. you know why? he has $12 million he made this year. yeah. he's got some change. you know, behind the couch.

a little on the floor in his car. a special tribute by sports re-enacted jeters highlights in lego-like form. >> deep to left field. going back, joyce. looking up. see ya. 3,000. history, with an exclamation point. you can do it with the jeter highlights. >> they are estimating he's making $30 million alone in memorabilia sales. >> tickets are going for $900 a pop to sit there. >> that's crazy. >> can believe it. >> and it could rain. it could rain at that game. >> raining on that parade. >> sorry. let's talk about the rain coming up the east coast. the first chaps of a soaker in a long time. eastern north carolina is getting drenched on the outer banks. gusty winds along with the heavy rain. this is heading north.

your morning commute will be wet. the heavy rain arrives in washington, d.c., baltimore. rainfall totals around two to three inches, from new york city down to d.c., especially areas of maryland and delaware and new jersey. today's forecast, rain only in the evening hours, for d.c. up to philadelphia. dry in new york city today. dry in boston. chance of afternoon storms in orlando and miami. the middle of the country, by the way, looks absolutely gorgeous. very warm conditions are now in the rockies. that heads to the east coast. this upcoming weekend is going to be like 80 degrees, feeling like summer. >> you know i'll be watching that one. >> picking apples in shorts and t-shirts. >> and pumpkins, too. apple ios 8 users beware of a scam out there. do you recognize this music legend? a major turn for america's premier luxury car. "hello. you can go ahead and put your bag right here."

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let's get down to business

this morning. mary, good morning. >> good morning, francis. looking ahead to this morning's open on wall street. disappointing data determining business confidence. the s&p and nasdaq closing at five-week lows. investors weighing data, showing slowing growth in countries like china and germany. and they were pressured by geopolitical concerns. fraudulent purchases tied to home depot's data breach. criminals used stolen card numbers to buy grocery stories. and does your new iphone 6-plus have a curved screen. there were reports of devices bending slight. that's not surprising, given the iphone 6 uses aluminum. that could bend.

back to you. >> supposedly they don't bend back. general motors is making cadillac a separate does unit. they will move the headquarters out of detroit and to trendy solo in new york city. coke, pepsi and dr. pepper facing growing pressure to fight obesity. they made the announcement at the clinton global initiative. police in japan have seized hundreds of pairs of sneakers with voyeur cameras on the toes. why on earth? the purpose of the cameras to capture upskirt moments for perverts. a dead body has clemson university suspending all. of its fraternities. a sophomore was found dead in the lake on monday. he allegedly went missing during a run. the coroner says he died of a fall. there's no indication of hazing. phillip specter here. this is specter, through his

murder trial of lana clarkson. now, this is phil spector. look what he looks like. photos taken when he was moved to a prison medical facility. he is serving 19 years to life. incompetent and passive. that's how bob costas described the handling of the ray rice scandal. >> nfl players are involved in criminal activity much less than the general population. the criminal offense they are most frequently guilty, is domestic violence. since these are reported, and this one has gone viral, there's a chance here, no matter how badly they've dragged their feet in the past, no matter how badly they bungled in the initial stages, there's a chance this could be a cultural turning point. a fake ad is circumstancelating on twitter. saying you can charge your

iphone faster by putting it in a microwave. this is a hoax. don't be fooled into microwaving your iphone. a public service announcement. remember this? that can happen if you fall for it. my little secret, put it on airplane mode. and it charges so much faster. a democrat considers a run for a t white house. and scott brown's brain cramp. and it's a criticism being lobbed at pot bpresident obama latte salute actually fair?

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time for scrambled politics. jim webb says he's considering running for president. he is a secretary of the navy and a decorated vietnam war vet. an interesting contrast to hillary clinton should she run. scott brown blanks on an abortion bill he co-sponsored. it had to do with abortion restricts. and a latte salute. people are twitter are mad at this white house instagram post. it shows the president saluting with his coffee in his hand. it brings other images to mind, showing president bush saluting with his dog. this is democrat jim

furlough. ferlo. >> i've been with women from teenage years to the years of 22, 23, 24. great relationships. no hard feels. but i've been a practicing homosexual. and i am gay. since at least the age of 24, or 25. hundreds of people know i'm gay. i just never made an official declaration. i never felt i had to wear a billboard on my forehead. but i'm gay. get over it. i love it. it's a great life. the united nations is reminding people to pay their parking tickets. a bill of $16 million. and the biggest offender, egypt. they owe just under $2 million. and what is musharraf perez doing these days? there's a big including a pizza

delivery job. [ spoking foreign language ] >> that's your dish of "scrambled politics." ed o'keeffe joins me on phone to delve in on what's ahead for the president before his speech at the united nations. >> great to be with you. >> let's talk about that speech. day two in the strikes over syria. how pivotal is this speech? will it be different on rallying the world against i.s.i.s.? what will he say? what will he not say? >> he's going to have to lay out justifications for continuing this battle. maybe has to convince a few skeptical countries who are still on the fence about whether or not to support this. it's one of several critical speeches he's given to the

general assembly. usually one of the biggest ones of the year for him. a lot of people have commented, a nobel peace prize president going to the united nations, at the start of a new war. obviously, he's got to justify that military action. and again, try to win over the skeptics. >> we have to factor in the administration criticized for failing to bring together a coallation. and now, the five countries coming together. is that that other countries will follow suit. can you follow what they did during "operation desert storm," "desert shield?" >> to a person, they were quite impressed that the president and convinced the arab nations to participate in this so actively. i think the start of it has been pretty well received. at least by members of congress. i think the big question will be, you know, to what extent

does that continue? do these countries fully embrace the participation? do they continues to participate, not only by dropping bombs and endi ining equipment. but will they stick with it? other countries will also participate. that will be critical. >> and seeing what congress does, as you wrote about senator tim kaine saying congress fa failifai failing to take this up. a preemptive war. ed o'keeffe, thank you very much. >> take care. just ahead, is heroin easy to yet than wine and cheaper than beer? apparently, it is. an adrenaline junkie's dream. "first look" will be right back. n transactions flowing. and when weather hits, it's data mayhem. but airlines running hp end-to-end solutions are always calm during a storm. so if your business deals with the unexpected,

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leading the news, in "the chicago tribune." heroin easier to get than wine, cheaper than beer. heroin costs $10 or less. nearly 3,000 pennsylvania residents have died over the past 5 years because of heroin or other abuse. in "usa today" are your pipes safe? see gas leaks near you. you can see statistics on the deaths, injuries and incidents caused by gas leaks nearby. gas explosions have killed 135 people over the last decade. check out the new competition that mixes kite boarding and surfing. challengers were given a task of crossing a desert in brazil. there's no course. it's up to them to find their way to the other side. they do whatever they think works. the race is just as much about finding the right way as a complete physical challenge.

either way, across the board, you win. >> come on, red bull. no jumping through fire hoops? no glass? >> thanks for watching "first look." "way too early" starts right now. have a good one. ♪ once again, it must be clear to anyone, who would plot against america and try to do americans harm, that we will not tolerate safe havens for terrorists. >> air strikes aimed at i.s.i.s. in syria and iraq. an all-american car company moves from the motor city to the big apple. is it enough to satisfy the luxury market? and you're going to meet the biker who apparently has nine lives. evading death not once, but twice. it's all caught on camera. can you guess where? this is "way too early."

we're getting it worked out. hi, everybody. i'll thomas roberts. it's wednesday, september 24th. welcome to "way too early." the show got gopro camera for wearable use. i can use that when i almost fell off the step. that would have been good tv. i didn't fall. and that's a good thing. we can get ready to go with the a-block. we're going to begin in new york. in a few hours, president obama will try to rally more international support for his plans to defeat islamic state militants. it was overnight the u.s. continued to pound i.s.i.s. targets in syria, for a second day in a row. as well as in iraq. and military officials tell nbc news, the air strikes are considered targets of opportunity. 100 missiles and bombs have been laun