>> wow. all right. bundle up out there. from all of us here at nbc 10 i'm renee chenault-fattah. >> i'm jim rosenfield. the news continues with "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. on our broadcast tonight, massacre in paris. the deadliest terror attack on french soil in half a century. mass gunmen open fire in a killing spree then get away. tonight, the dead and critically wounded, the manhunt and incredible outpouring in the streets. also tonight, the growing threat of military-style attacks on civilian targets in broad daylight. execution killings and those who fear it's just the beginning. a big break to report in the search for that airasia jet and the mystery surrounding the crash. and our frozen nation. here at home windchills 30 below zero with more on the way. "nightly news" from washington tonight, begins now.

this is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams reporting tonight from washington. good evening, the world is reacting tonight to a terrorist attack in one of the great world capitals that prompted an urgent manhunt and a frantic effort to identify three men. today in paris in broad daylight masked men entered the editorial office of a satyrical magazine and they were shooting to kill. the death toll reached a dozen, including two police officers before they made their getaway, prompting the manhunt. several dead were editorial cartoonist. one wanted by islamic extremists for depicting the prophet mohamed in a negative way. in paris people have filled the street in solidarity. this is being felt in all the capitals here in the u.s. capital city and indeed around the world. we begin with bill nellely in pas

ris to start us off. >> reporter: police now naming three suspects and a police operation reportedly underway not far from here. this is a country in shock. those are the words of the french president. and many here are afraid the gunmen could attack again. heavily armed and shouting in arabic "god is great," masked gunmen carrying out a massacre in paris. they're outside the offices of a magazine which they'd stormed. inside 11 people mostly journalists, lay dead. minutes later more killings as police officers confront the gunmen. one walks to a wounded officer and shoots him point-blank. as the gunmen begin to make their escape we told you we would avenge the prophet

mohamed, as they return to their car one gunmen calmly picks up his shoe. their target in the heart of paris was a satyrical magazine charlie hebdo religious leaders including the prophet mohamed. a clash of police a right versus a religion that depicts any good or bad of the prophet mohamed. the gunmen forced their way past security killing one man at the door. upstairs at a meeting of the magazine's staff the gunmen opened fire killing editor stephane and several cartoonists, one 80 years old. it's like a butcher's inside there, this man says. there are so many dead. the assault lasted about five minutes. the gunmen seemed fearless and made their getaway quickly, later hijacking another car

leaving the bullet-ridden black citron behind. the magazine had been attacked before. an attack that didn't stop it. journalists here are shocked and angry. >> it is an outrage and a major attack on the freedom of the press. >> reporter: french president francois hollande says the country is in a state of shock but must unite. tonight they're doing just that. police have identified three men as suspects two brothers in their early 30s and an 18-year-old. no arrests have been confirmed. and no one is yet claimed responsibility for france's worst terrorist attack in decades. and, brian, some very late word literally within the last minute and a half a senior u.s.

counterterrorism official has told nbc news that one of the suspects has been killed and the remaining two are in custody. that may well be as a result of that operation in a city about 90 miles from here. remember two of the suspects were brothers. and it was suspected that at least one of them had returned from syria last summer. this remember france's worst episode of terrorism in 54 years. back to you, brian. >> bill neely starting off our coverage from paris tonight. bill, thanks. our chief foreign affairs correspondent richard engel has covered attacks like this groups like this for many years. he is part of our team of coverage on this story tonight. richard, good evening. >> reporter: dressed in black, masked determined cradling their weapons. the gunmen look like seasoned veterans who stepped right off the battlefield of iraq syria or yemen. or at the very least are

mimicking the propaganda videos of militant groups to a t. al qaeda and isis both place a growing value on propaganda. not just as advertising, but to turn their supporters into deadly weapons. both groups publish slick competing online magazines in english. both have been telling would-be recruits not to come to the front lines in the middle east anymore but to stay at home and attack civilian targets. al qaeda's branch in yemen, the same group that killed an american reporter last month, specifically marked the editor of charlie hebdo for death in 2013. his magazine has infuriated for printing anti-islamic material repeatedly. al qaeda in yemen said it would make the magazine pay for it. also on its hit list other activists who criticized radical islam including long time target solomon. in a statement he said i stand

with charlie hebdo as we all must, to defend the art of satire which has always been a force for liberty and against tyranny, dishonesty and stupidity. there has been a spate of recent attacks. the gunmen in canada the man with an axe in new york the attack on a cafe in sydney. all inspired by islamic militants to take matters in their own hands. >> the more the greater the impetus is for others to carry out an attack. >> reporter: this time radicals consider an affront to their intolerant ideology. and, brian, at least one of those three suspects one of the two brothers was a well-known islamic radical who'd actually been convicted in 2008 on terrorism charges. brian. >> richard engel, part of our coverage of this story tonight. richard, thanks. we want to bring in michael

lighter former under both president obama and bush. he is executive president for a security firm that does work for the federal government. what was your government experience what was your first thought upon hearing this news today and anything about it indicate we could be in for more? >> well i think from what we saw these guys were pretty sophisticated, brian. this wasn't the run-of-the-mill home grown where they do one stupid thing with an axe. they were organized. they knew their target. they knew how to get away for a period. that's a level of sophistication we haven't seen. i think what is most telling here is really how vulnerable these soft targets are to these sorts of acts. and whether we'll see more, i think success, unfortunately, breeds success. wherever the al qaeda message is coming from syria or yemen, is gaining traction in many nations including in france. >> so safe to be on alert a little bit higher degree here in the united states? >> i think so. i think we're going to see

elevated levels of security in cities like new york washington los angeles. and that's appropriate. because other people who are on the edge see the success and say i can be like that too. and organizations like isis and syria understand how to use social media and motivate and drive these people towards mobilizing and making these sorts of attacks. >> michael, thank you for being with us here in our washington bureau tonight. now to the response from the white house and the obama administration on this side of the atlantic. our white house correspondent kristen welker is on the north lawn for us tonight. kristen, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening. late today president obama called french president hollande from air force one offering condolences and the full support of the united states. homeland security secret service and pentagon officials say there is no known domestic threat. still, administration officials say the paris attack is a reminder that terrorists will strike anywhere. officials in some major cities including new york and boston have beefed up security today.

the president called france one of america's oldest allies and condemned the attacks. >> for us to see the kind of cowardly evil attacks that took place today, i think reinforces once again why it's so important for us to stand in solidarity with them just as they stand in solidarity with us. >> reporter: secretary john kerry echoed mr. obama's remarks, speaking in english and french. >> each and every american stands with you today not just in horror or in anger or in outrage for this vicious act of violence. >> reporter: now, u.s. intelligence officials have been in contact with their french counterparts throughout the day. the president on the road for three days will receive regular briefings. brian. >> kristen welker from the white

house north lawn tonight. and just to repeat in a short time ago we learned from senior u.s. counterterrorism officials they are telling nbc news of these three masked men sought all day, one is dead two in custody. we'll continue to follow this story. in the meantime also overseas there's been a major break in the investigation into the crash of airasia flight 8501. they have located the tail section of the airbus a320 about 100 feet down on the ocean floor. the tail section is critical here because that's where the black boxes are stored. they contain the electronic clues to this crash. we get the very latest tonight from nbc's kelly cobiella in indonesia. >> reporter: it's the first visual proof that airasia flight 8501 is on the bottom of the sea. three pictures of the tail section. you can see part of the registration number and the a and i from the insignia.

the black boxes could still be inside. the flight data and cockpit voice recorders are typically found here. it's the first place searchers will look. the flight data recorder collects hundreds of data points including the plane's air speed and altitude. the voice recorder will tell investigators what the pilots were talking about. and if any alarms were going off in the cockpit moments before the crash. >> until we get the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder we won't get to the bottom of this entire event and really understand how the crew got themselves into it and how they reacted to it. >> reporter: it was the black boxes from air france flight 447 found on the ocean floor nearly two years after the 2009 crash that helped identify the cause of the accident. if airasia's black boxes have fallen loose, searchers can still spot them on sonar. already they've spotted 12 large objects below the surface, but

strong currents are stirring up silt and mud. it's so murky divers are having problems seeing under water. today, airasia founder tony fernandezfer nan nan nandes tweeted -- searchers are hoping they've already located the fuselage on sonar and they'll be able to recover the remains of those passengers and crew still missing once the seas are calmer and clearer. brian. >> kelly cobiella live for us in indonesia tonight. kelly, thanks. and still ahead for us tonight, the nation's weather in the news once again. blinding cold with a dangerous mix of ice and snow triggering pile-ups and rescues, triggering watches and warnings. also the amazing show happening just offshore. what so many say is one of the most spectacular things they have ever seen. (woman) caring for someone with alzheimer's means i am a lot of things. i am his guardian. i am his voice.

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tonight, 183 million americans are living under a windchill warning or advisory. that includes much of the state of florida. so much of the country is now covered in ice and snow it makes for an incredible sight from space. and there's more on the way. tomorrow will bring the coldest temperatures we have seen yet in a lot of places which will now go to subzero. our report tonight from nbc's kevin tibbles in chicago. >> reporter: fierce blowing snow

coming from the arctic north causing pile-ups in michigan. hazardous conditions in erie, pennsylvania and thermometers frozen at 7 below in waterloo iowa. this morning temperatures dipped below zero in 15 states. with windchills making it seem even colder some school closings reported in more than a dozen of them. overnight firefighters battled both the weather and the flames outside chicago. >> the first half hour we were here we were not able to get water. >> reporter: come morning in the windy city commuters sought to underground pedestrian walkways just to escape it all. >> oh it's a godsend. it's like a godsend. >> reporter: the police outreach team offers those outside offers winter clothing and advice on where they can go to warm up. >> whether we can talk them into grabbing a blanket and an extra hat for the night. >> reporter: rescue workers

pulled an indiana woman and her dog from frigid waters after she fell in trying to save her pet. and while the deep freeze continues, some 200 million people are forced to tough it out. >> another round of snow will race through the midwest on thursday and make its way into the northeast by friday. windchills thursday morning up north will range from about 20 to 30 below zero and down south will be close to zero. >> reporter: in fact it will quite likely be warmer tomorrow in tiny north pole alaska than it will be in parts of the lower 48 as this frigid january sloth drags on. and, brian, a deadly pile-up in whiteout conditions in pennsylvania has killed three. and while temperatures are supposed to slowly jump start themselves and start rising by some time by the end of the week it probably won't happen in time to reopen many of those closed schools. brian. >> kevin tibbles, another cold night at navy pier in chicago.

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the ground won't stop shaking in texas. eleven quakes of various strengths in the last 24 hours mostly in the ft. worth area. no injuries no cause, no serious damage quite yet, just to people's nervous systems. both in the avocado industry and oatmeal industry there are celebrations tonight celebrating the fact they are both the subject of separate medical studies containing good news for their products. the journal of the american heart association says avocados can actually lower cholesterol within weeks and have good plaque busting properties. in the harvard school of public health say whole grain foods like oatmeal can lower your cardiovascular death by 20%.

paybacks john boehner easily elected house speaker yesterday despite 24 defections in his own party. and now the speaker has yanked two of those republicans off the house rules committee, at least for now, as the committee chairman put it sometimes there can be consequences. "time" is in the news tonight beginning with the time capsule from 1795 they opened in boston last night. the expression on the curators face says it all, signed on a silver plaque were the names samuel adams and paul revere and what may even be their long-lost fingerprints. the box also contained five folded newspapers from the day and two dozen coins, one dating back to 1652. and if the year 2015 seems to drag on forever, there's a good reason for it. the people who keep the exact time for all of us at the international earth rotation and reference system service are adding a leap second to the clock at midnight on the last day of june. it's our first leap second in

three years and it's meant to makeup for a slight dip in the earth's rotational speed. when we come back serenity at sea. an up close look at one of nature's most remarkable sights.

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in the waters just off the coast of southern california these days if the light is right, if the time is right and you're in the right spot you will be treated to one of the greatest sights on our planet a thrilling experience that doesn't come along often. as some of the largest creatures of the planet put on a spectacular show. nbc's hallie jackson has our report tonight from the california coastline. >> yes! >> reporter: it's a must-see show on the california coast. and you don't even need a boat to watch the biggest pod of killer whales ever spotted by captain dan sulles today. >> it's been one of the most spectacular things that in my 31 years of being a captain that i've ever seen. >> reporter: another orca sighting. his audience have named him comet. splashing, feeding, playing. >> it's a special whale. almost like seeing my friend

multiple times a year. >> reporter: the black and white killers are here hunting gray the smaller whale species moving closer to land earlier than ever in a record setting season so far. >> the last four years we've had whales everywhere. >> reporter: you see how close we are to this whale. put it into perspective, 20,000 whales use this migratory route, so what we're seeing is only a fraction of what's out there. the whales are moving towards mexico. and experts wonder if warmer waters may be driving them closer to california. >> we think what happened is it was a little too warm for the schooling fish in baja and they may have moved up the coast and their predator moved up the coast. >> reporter: still, it will take time for scientists to figure out exactly why all this is happening. so while we wait we watch, even listen. spectators at sea, nature's predators, natural performers. hallie jackson, nbc news, dana

point, california. >> beautiful sight to end our program on a wednesday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams reporting from our nbc washington bureau. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow night from our studios in new york. good night. 60 minutes legend steve croft caught in a cheating scandal. >> now on "extra".." ♪ ♪ extra, extra ♪ >> i'm steve croft. >> steve croft, 60 shades of grey? explosive new photos of the

married news man and his alleged mistress outside a new york hotel. the steamy texts, the undercover hookups, the story you won't see "60 minutes." bill cosby's tv wife comes out swinging. >> her first words as three more accusers come forward today. "extra" counts down to sunday's golden globes. >> i don't know what i'm wearing. >> from nominees jessica chastain and viola davis to co-hosts tina and amy, every last-minute secret. >> how are we going to keep it fresh? >> we're not. >> plus who can wear this 50-carat yellow diamond? kirstie alley onn dieting and dating. plus, nicole kidman on her date disaster with jimmy fallon. >> and then you put a video game on or something. this is "extra" at universal studios hollywood, the entertainment capital of l.a. [ cheers and applause ] hey, everyone. welcome