my husband and i, our only concern is for the health and welfare of josh, shane, and sarah. >> missing americans. three hikers being held in iran. bank bonanza. one of the world's largest banks barclays, posts big profits. and the mystery surrounding missing pilot scott speicher, the first casualty of the gulf war, is solved. >> it's such a relief to be able to bring him home. captioning funded by cbs good morning, everyone. thanks for joining us. i'm ross palumbo in for michelle guillen. this morning the swiss embassy in tehran is working to

learn what it can about three american hikers being held by the iranian government. susan roberts is in washington with the details. >> reporter: the three american hikers were taken prisoner on friday. they'd been hiking in northern iraq, and apparently didn't realize they had crossed the border. their families now are obviously worried. >> my husband and i, our only concern is for the health and welfare of josh, shane, and sarah. >> reporter: joshua fattal, shane bower, andah s s had entered iran last week. they had entered in a area of the kurdish region of northern iraq. >> they entered into iran from iraq's kurdistan region. >> reporter: just before the three americans were captured, they contacted a friend, shon meckfessel, who stayed behind at the hotel. their last message, we are surrounded by armed men. irene meckfessel says her

grandson is safe at the u.s. embassy. >> he had a cold, so he didn't go with them. heays they didn't go over the border. >> reporter: iranian tv says the trio was warned by border guards before they were arrested. another u.s. citizen, journalist roxana saberi, was recently arrested and held by the iranian government for three months. in joshua fattal's neighborhood, the uncertainty is frightening. >> you never know what they're going to do, what they're feeling. i guess it's really scary, and we can't really know because we're not there. >> reporter: the u.s. does not have diplomatic relations with iran, so it's up to the swiss to sort things out. the state department is doing all it can to obtain the release. ross? >> susan roberts in washington, thank you. also in iran this morning, a resolution of june's disputed election. today iran's supreme leader approved mahmoud ahmadinejad's election. that means ahmadinejad will be sworn in for a second term this wednesday. opposition leaders say the

election was rigged. there were widespread protests during which at least 20 demonstrators were killed by government forces. in afghanistan, the deadly violence of july has carried into august with no letup. in a western afghan city this morning, a remote-controlled roadside bomb killed a dozen people and critically injured the apparent target, a provincial police chief. elsewhere in afghanistan, six american troops died in combat this weekend after 43 were killed in july, the worst monthly toll of the war so far. the remains of u.s. navy pilot michael "scott" speicher are being examined by military dna experts in maryland this morning, but the pentagon says it's sure of their identity. speicher was the first american casualty of the 1991 persian gulf war, but his family had to keep pressing the military for years to track down exactly where he died. the family says it finds solace in having transformed the search process so that no serviceman or

woman is ever left behind again. kimberly dozier has the story. >> reporter: navy captain michael "scott" speicher has been found at last, ending an almost two decade long wait for his family. the first american casualty of the gulf war was found buried in the desert west of baghdad, near the wreckage of his f-18 hornet. u.s. marines in al an bar found bones and dental fragments now positively identified by pentagon. an iraqi said he was there when bedouins found scott speicher dead from the crash. >> he remembered the plane going down, and he remembered the bedouins burying the body. >> reporter: captain speicher was shot down on january 17th, 1991. the 33-year-old father of two was not supposed to fly that day. >> i'd also like to say hello to my wife joanne. >> reporter: his shipmates told 60 minutes he refused to be left behind. as they approached their target,

a fellow pilot saw a flash where speicher's plane had been. >> just an incredible anti-aircraft blush. >> reporter: he was first declared killed in action. without remains, doubts brew. officials changed his status to missing in action. >> no matter what, we were committed to finding either captain speicher alive. or if we couldn't find him alive, to find his remains. his status never mattered. >> reporter: after the fall of baghdad, they scoured iraq looking for evidence. all they found were the initials mss carved on the walls, leaving investigators to wonder if michael "scott" speicher had been held there. cbs news' david martin visited it in 2003. in speicher's hometown of jacksonville, florida, his family and friends never gave up hope andeppt u a campaign to keep on searching. >> it's such a relief to be able to bring him home. i'm just sad that we couldn't bring him home alive. >> reporter: a spokesman for the

family has thanked the navy for never giving up. they're looking forward to bringing captain speicher home at last. kimberly dozier, cbs news, the pept gone. on the "cbs money watch" a mixed day for stock markets in asia, and big profits for a major bank. karen brown is here in new york with more. good morning, karen. >> good morning, ross. most asian markets edged higher today boosted by news the u.s. economy is shrinking at a slower pace than expected. hong kong stocks rose about 1%. only japan bukd the trend this morning with the nikkei down just about 1%. wall street is feeling good this morning after its best july in 20 years and its best month since 2002. on friday, the dow closed up 17 points, gaining 8% for the month. the nasdaq was down just about six but up on the month, continuing its longest winning streak in nearly six years. some analysts are warning the markets may be too enthusiastic, and that thered could be a correction coming this fall.

and good news for great britain's second largest bank. barclays reported its first half earnings rose 10% on its profits from investment banking. it also says thawing credit markets helped boost its earnings to $3.16 billion. traders also watching closely this morning for earnings reports from banking giant hsbc. analysts are anticipating a drop in profits. and google is now a verb, but that doesn't mean the company doesn't have to advertise. google is trying to gain some traction for its office applications, which are trying to compete with microsoft. so this morning you might see a google billboard near you. the company is leasing billboards in major cities like new york, san francisco, chicago, and boston, and a different message will be displayed each weekday through august. and the message was clear in tokyo this morning. pretty women in lettuce leaf bikinis get, yes, a lot of attention. the women are animal rights

protestors. they are hoping to promote their vegetarian message. in previous years, police have cracked down on the group for excessive nudity. this year the bikinis seem to be acceptable attire. ross? >> talk about going green. karen brown here in new york. thank you. still ahead on the morning news, deciding the future of cash for clunkers, the program. and up next, a building demolition reaches an unexpected tipping point. but first, katie couric has a preview of the "cbs evening news." >> this popular off road vehicle is linked to a disturbing number of injuries and even deaths. so why are there no government safety standards? what you need to know before getting behind the wheel, an exclusive cbs news investigation this week only on the "cbs evening news." it helps your natural cleansing process. helps lower cholesterol. promotes overall well-being. and provides a good source of natural fiber. try metamucil today, in capsules and powders.

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president corazon aquino, who died on saturday. more than 20 years ago, aquino led the people power revolt that forced ferdinand marcos from power. hundreds of firefighters are battling wildfires this morning in spain's ka nary islands off of northwest africa. amateur video shows flames on the outskirts of a town on the island of la palma. the fires erupted friday night racing across the island, destroying dozens of homes and forcing the evacuations of about 4,000 residents. in sydney, australia, black smoke billowed from a burning factory filled with plastics, fuel, and toxic chemicals. dozens of nearby residents had to be evacuated yesterday, but firefighters managed to prevent the flames from spreading to other buildings. in western canada, they're battling wildfires from the air. hundreds of mostly small fires erupted this weekend in the dry

forest northeast of vancouver. local officials warned the wildfire threat is the highest in memory. and a few hundred miles east in alberta, canada, a weekend country music festival was cancelled following a deadly stage collapse. one person was killed, and about 75 others injured saturday when a sudden violent storm knocked over the stage. it happened shortly before film star kevin costner and his band were due to take the stage. we've all seen buildings demolished in seconds with explosive charges that bring those structures straight down. it doesn't always work so well, as this demolition over the weekend in northern turkey shows. wow, instead of collapsing, the building just rolled over onto its roof, narrowly missing the other structures nearby. fortunately, no one was hurt. straight ahead, your monday morning weather. and in sports, melky cabrera

didn't stop until he finished off something the yankees haven't done in 14 years.

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shows that the northwest and hwsoeshw are mainly clear. much of the midwest is looking at cloudy skies. skies are also cloudy over the deep south, and both the plains and the northeast have clear skies. later today, severe thunderstorms will be popping up across the midwest. much of the west will remain hot and dry. the heat returns to the southern plains where temperatures could top the 100 degree mark. and some strong storms are likely around the deep south. in sports, the white sox were looking for a four-game sweep over the yankees, but melky cabrera had other plans. after hitting a home run, a double, and a single, cabrera finished off the cycle with a triple in the ninth inning. he's the first yankee to hit for the cycle in 14 years. the yanks won 8-5. in baltimore sunday, boston scored early and scored often. josh redick's first career home run gave the red sox a 7-0 lead.

victor martinez, playing just his second game with the sox, got five hits and drove in four runs in an 18-10 victory. kansas city got nothing from tampa bay until john buck finally broke up shields' no-hitter. the royals would score two runs in the eighth, one of them on this double steal. they beat the rays 4-1. in golf, after two great rounds, tiger woods had the lead going into the final round of the buick open. his only real problem yesterday came on the 13th hole when his second shot ended up in the water. woods got mad, but he still made par and went on to win by three shots, his fourth victory of the year. and the women's british open has a british champion. katrina matthew of scotland made a 40-foot birdie putt on the 14th hole. she went on to win by three shots just ten weeks after giving birth to her second

child. when we return, will there be more cash for the cash for clunkers program? and rediscovering mozart. new pieces uncovered from the master composer. his box is what i need to control my diabetes, to stay healthy - and get on with my life. it comes from liberty medical. and now, it's not only where i get my diabetes testing supplies - but it's where i get my prescription drugs as well. see if you're on medicare, the cost of your diabetes testing supplies as well as your prescription drugs may be covered. liberty takes care of all the paperwork with medicare and sends the prescription forms directly to your doctor for approval. then, on your schedule, packs up this box and sends it right to your door with no charge for shipping. and liberty assures you have everything you need to manage your diabetes, including most brand name meters. call now and we'll send you a free meter. plus, a free cookbook when you join.

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on the "cbs morning news," here's a look at today's weather. powerful thunderstorms will be developing across the midwest. it will remain hot and dry in the southern plains and the southwest. the northeast will be dry and mild. here's another look at the top stories this morning. the state department says it's doing all it can to secure the release of three americans being held in iran. they were hiking in northern iraq on friday when they claimed they mistakenly crossed the border. iran's supreme leader has formally endorsed mahmoud ahmadinejad for the second term.

his election in june triggered widespread protests by demonstrators who believe the election was fixed. in this country, the senate votes this week on extending the popular cash for clunkers program. the house approved a $2 billion extension last week. meantime, beginning tomorrow, chrysler, faced with low inventory, is ending its offer to double the government's rebate on gas guzzlers. susan roberts joins us again from washington. good morning, susan. >> reporter: hi there, ross. good morning again to you. the fate of this program, cash for clunkers, will be decided as the senate meets for a final thehth for clunker pgram cess. f cod be headed for the exit ramp. the obama administration says the program is out of money, and it will be suspended unless congress approves another $2 billion this week. the program has already gone through $1 billion, leading to the sale of 250,000 new vehicles. owners of gas guzzlers can

receive rebates of up to $4,500 toward the purchase of a new fuel-efficient car. ford says the program helped boost sales for the first time in two years. the house has already approved the new money. now it's up to the senate, but some republicans may try to block it. >> we estimated this would cost $1 billion. now they're saying we need $2 billion more. the role of the federal government is not to run the used car business. >> reporter: democrats believe cash for clunkers is one more way to reverse the recession, and the obama administration's top money men think the economy just may be headed for a turnaround. >> if you look at economic output over the next six months, it's actually likely to start to increase. >> reporter: and former federal reserve chairman alan greenspan thinks the worst is behind us. >> i'm pretty sure we've already seen the bottom. >> reporter: the obama administration thinks it will change in 2010. >> we'll start to see unemployment come down beginning half of next year.

>> reporter: cash for clunkers and other programs are aimed to decrease unemployment, but the spending is creating huge deficits. they'll eventually be forced to raise taxes to bring down debt. the obama administration has yet to rule that out. and some senators who voted for it earlier this year now believe that the funding should actually require more and include more fuel-efficient cars and also that it should include used vehicles in the program as well. some say these fuel-efficient vehicles should be in the mix sooner than later. ross? >> susan roberts in washington, thank you. this morning we have new music from mozart, whoas died or 200 years ago. scholars in austria say two piano works from the 1760s have just been identified as mozart's. the musical prodigy was 7 or 8 years old when he composed them. they were performed yesterday on mozart's own piano. take a listen. ♪ ♪

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good morning. i'm audrey barnes in for andrea roane. topping our news, partial appearance in fairfax. president obama will be joining virginia senator jim webb and others to mark the start of a new g.i. bill. the bill officially took affect on saturday and it's the

largest expansion of education benefits for veterans since world war ii. the pentagon whas coirmed the remains of navy pilot michael scott speicher have been identified. his jet went down on the first first night of the gulf war. today we expect the national weather service to examine a trail of damage in cecil county, maryland to determine if it was a tornado that downed several trees. nearby residents think it was a twister. tornadoes hit in frederick and carroll counties. turbulent weekend weather wise. >> things are settling down. we will turn up the heat this week. as far as storm chances 20% less. and look at what happened yester y.>> teafternoon and enthis then off shore and this morning other than a feaffeclds, it is nice and quiet.

weather will not be impacting c this morning. thavismorning. weave had inregsin thinthe upp 77 from saint indigos. we are at 73. 85 to 90 under partly sunny to mostly sunny skies. >> hope everyone had a well- rested weekend. i know you were busy with the legg mason classic. >> having fun. >> that's right. >> there's no major incidents or accidents to tell you about. a clear commute to the beltway. moving to 95 northbound from the prince william parkway to the mixing bowl. you are at speed and 270 no incidents or accidents. over to you. well, get a group of friends together and start to wrap up the deals. there's a collective buying movement growing across the country. lesli foster tells us it is gaining ground here in the nation's capital. >> any opportunity to save a little money i'm happy for. >> reporter: erin is on a tight

budget but still wants to look good. so the georgetown nursing student is always on the hundred for a bargain. >> something i'm looking for these days so the website has been helpful. >> buy with me.com is giving erin, her friends and people she doesn't even know collective buying power. >> before you had group deals that had to be organized but now you can do it through on- line exposure. >> the site offers a down voucher to use at stores, restaurants, spas and more. once the minimum of 10 to 20 people click on the promotion the group gets the savings. >> the fact i can get $250 for $100 was a great opportunity. >> bought three vouchers. >> she said $20 for each $50 voucher she will use. at a time when stores can use the business this site gives them a boost.

>> our hopes, we are building a new customer base from that. bed even if a friend has omcome rehollpefumethey arive bringing five others. >> reporter: they emphasize buying power in numbers. in four weeks here in dc, team leader nick yeager says the concept is taking off. now businesses are contacting them to sign up. >> a win-win for everybody. the merchant and consumer wins and we win because we can promote items we love. >> reporter: lesli foster for 9 news now and website website wusa9.com. >> to find out how to get involved in the collective buying bargaining, log on to wusa9.com and click on