today came a surprising bond with kim jong-un. it's such a strange pair, a truly odd couple. etball star dennis rodman and north korean dictator kim jong-un chumming it up court side in pyongyang. he told his new buddy, he now has a friend for life. they watched the harlem globetrotters play basketball. >> the tag line for the show is the absurdity of the modern condition. if anything shows the absurdity of the modern condition, it's this. >> shane smith is the show's producer. he sent rodman and the globetrotters to north korea. its was not sure they would have an audience with a feared leader. they not only met with him but dined with him at his palace after the game. once at the palace, the theme from the show "dallas" was said to be constantly playing in the background. the bizarre meeting comes weeks after north korea announced it conducted a nuclear test and tensions with the u.s. are particularly high. former white house adviser and negotiator victor cha says while this meeting is surprising, kim jong-un has done a lot of predictable things since taking over. >> i think

what basketball star dennis rodman told kim jong-un during his visit to north korea. >>> welcome back. former nba star dennis rodman rubbed shoulders with north korea's kim jong-un today. rodman is in the country with players from the harlem globetrotters team. rodman sat next to the north korean leader at an exhibition game in pyongyang, north korea. u.s. players played on mixed teams, ending in a tie. kim jong-un is said to be a big basketball fan. rodman also spoke to the crowd telling kim, quote, you have a friend for life. >>> giants star tim lincecum could soon be headed to court. his former landlord is accusing the pitcher of trashing his mission district townhome back in 2011 causing at least $200,000 in damage, something lincecum strongly denies. he says he's prepared to fight the case in open court but would rather handle it in a closed-door arbitration. the case is on hold while the court decides where it belongs. >>> alex smith is headed for kansas city and his now former teammates are letting him know what they really think and it's all good. 49 erdz tackle, joe stayly po

kim jong-il would have turned 71 on saturday. kim jong-un promoted officers to the ranks of lieutenant and major general to mark the anniversary. kim said the promotions reflected the spirit of his father. he called the officers loyal warriors and he said they would help north korea achieve what he called final victory. >>> south korean defense ministry officials say they remain on alert for the possibility of another nuclear test by north korea. spokesperson said the north has been preparing for a nuclear test at a tunnel in addition to the western one that was used on tuesday. kim said the entrance of the western tunnel appears to be intact after the underground explosion. he explained no radioactive materials have been detected because the tunnel had containment walls. >>> south korea's outgoing president has provided insight into talks he's had with chinese leaders about security on the korean peninsula should reunification ever happen. ba he spoke to editors at the newspaper. he said that chinese officials have for the past several year

analysts said the reduction in rank of the close aide to kim jong-un was likely meant to strengthen discipline in the military. on tuesday choe and people's armed ministry meeting wearing one large star and general's four small stars. he rallied the troops said north korea will settle its confrontation with the united states once leader kim jong-un issues the order. north korea is reportedly preparing for a third nuclear test in the country's northeast. >>> tokyo stocks rallied and many asian markets saw gains. ron madison has been following the action and is here to explain today's action. >> you got to go way back to see the levels we saw today. about four years and four months. i came on news of the governor's resignation. the nikkei as you see there climbing very close to 4% today. ended at 11,463. now this is the highest closing since september 2008. that was two weeks after lehman brothers collapsed. investors are hoping for further monetary easing from his successor and sport related issues led the advance brought on by a weaker yen. the yen is weakening further and this is due to inves

kim jong-un is a man who is madly dashing tissue is credentials and a very reckless and dangerous way. i think would be very dangerous for us to let him think that that is acceptable behavior. so this may be changing north korea's tolerance for risk. and the fact kim jong-un may be under the assumption that we are becoming even more risk and tolerant -- and tolerant. that we will be risk averse and cost of first a look at our budgeting paper cutting back on our operational capacity, a special with sequestration threatening at the end of this month. kim jong-un may be reading this headline to the sequestration thinking, united states couldn't afford to operate. who knows what he thinks on these issues? that it's very, very dangerous to let him think that this is something that's going to be acceptable. of course, it's deeply dangerous to threatening and do not to act on it. so we have to be very serious when we make decisions as a government on what to do. i think we're also emboldening iran. iran's latest action on nuclear proliferation can partly be explained by the successful missil

kim jong-un has his finger on the nuclear trigger. he may find himself more isolated and threatened, not more secure. he's already warning that any new sanctions may lead to new nuclear tests. the bbc news, seoul. >> more threatened. that is a worrying prospect. i am joined by the senior adviser for east asia policy at the u.s. defense department. thank you for coming in. what do we know about this latest test? >> the details are still coming in. we think it was more powerful and relatively successful than previous tests in 2006-2009. we're still trying to figure out whether it was using plutonium or highly enriched uranium. >> what is the significant? >> highly enriched uranium would be new. they have limited stockpiles of plutonium carried they would use that up in their testing process. >> we have the united nations saying this is a threat to international security. how much is that true? >> it is a more present threat than it was one week ago. coming on the heels of north korea's at missile launch in december which was more succes

on domestic kim jong un, new leader needs more popular support to enhance his base so it means he may be -- maybe he hopes to shore up his toughness or strong attitude toward the u.s., very hostile the policy, so therefore this is one of the reasons. the other is, of course, they hope to send some signal to the u.s. to restart some negotiatio negotiations. so i think it's quite intentionally north korea pick such a date -- i mean, just a day before barack obama's. quite sure barack obama were to include condemnation of north korean nuclear test to his speech, so it means quite hard for pyongyang to see there's some very strong repercussion from the u.s., but, in other words -- on the other hand, it's another good opportunity for kim jong-un to shore up his toughness against the u.s. >> initially we asked why the north informed the u.s. and china of the test before. >> i think this friction over some kind of north korean, very cautious attitude because i think that they on the one hand, some -- they expected harsh criticism from u.s. and, japan and schin that. so if they informed them

they want to get the north korean leader kim jong un into a game. trace gallagher with the news. live for us in los angeles. what is this going on here? >> you know, that's the question, shep. why is it that kim the younger keeps importing american culture when you look at the country and most koreans, north koreans in general are not allowed to access american culture and yet last year you had kim the younger hosting a big disney celebration in downtown pyongyang. eric schmidt the google chairman was there last month and now you have dennis rodman. these are all attempts by kim jong un to show the global community that he is open to reform. rodman sis this trip is not political but others disagree. listen. we got invited and come over and have some fun and hoping that, you know, it will be some fun. >> i don't think it really shows that there is going to be any substantial change in the nature of the regime. it just shows that kim jong un happens to like dennis rodman and the nba. >> we should know when eric smith went there last month the state department called that quote, unhe

what is the real story behind kim jong un's nuclear test? mort?> he is making an extraordinary statement a small country like that able to develop this kind of weaponry and rocket try and make it all work. it tells you about where the world is going but he is telling everybody don't mess with us okay? and a lot of people do want to mess with them. the president said we will standby our allies a lot of allies in that part of the world do not think the united states is standing behind them. >>> why should the united states after the korean war have 20 guys on the dm. z., the point is if the united states weren't on the dnz, this guy wouldn't be building intercontinental missiles and nuclear warheads to attack us p. both korea and japan are probably looking very hard at their own nuclear deterrents and they ought to. >> what about china. >> >> klein is basically supposed to corral and reign in north korea. the japanese are in a conflict with the chinese and the katrinas who have this problem are going to look themselves at nuclear weapons and that is

se realizo de una manera segura y que la finalidad del joven gobernante norcoreano kim jong un, fue enviarenemigo de pyong yang durante la guerra de corea. --el gobierno de corea del norte enfrenta sanciones internacional es como la prohibion de viajar para responsables del regimen y el congelamiento de haberes de empresas del pais. blanca ---esta noche le presentamos en exclusiva el estado de la carcel calificada como la peor en mexico, donde conviven asesinos, violadores y narcos. cesar --quien logro obtener este acceso es raul torres. 00:02 00:21 01:02 quick 01:14 01:23 01:35 quick 02:06 take pkg stop open roll weather open ---vamos al pronostico del tiempo.. blanca ---con javier castro.. take pkg cesar ---pausa comercial pero en minutos, take nat wait for cue vo - cesar ---una entrevista en exclusiva con los integrantes de el trono de mexico durante su visita a la bahia... juanfra live segment ends francisco ramirez y domina la accion blanca ---adelante juan francisco stop open ===open domina la accion=== chroma key jf amigos del deporte,,, muy buenas noches,,, llegamos al momento de d

madeleine albright went to pyongyang during the clinton administration one of the gifts she presented kim jong-un'sil, she brought a basketball signed by michael jordan to north korea and that basketball by all accounts i heard it when i was there and a lot of north koreans have pointed it out, they venerate, they love michael jordan. they love basketball. kim jong-il the father really loved it. the son obviously loves it as well. so there is a certain logic to why dennis rodman and the harlem globetrotters are in pyongyang right now. >> you know what i bet anything too they will get a basketball and have all of those players sign so the same way they have the michael jordan basketball they will have this glob trotters, harlem globetrotters basketball side-by-side. >> kim jong-il now the dead father he loved that basketball. madeline albright, i invited her to come on the show today to talk about when she presented that basketball to kim jong-il. kim jong-un now has dennis rodman in pyongyang. we're keeping a close eye on capitol hill. any minute the u.s. senate should begin voting on president oba

washington but this is seen as a direct threat from a direct message i should say from new leader kim jong un to president obama just hours before he gives his annual state of the union surely president obama will react somehow most likely by threatening more sanctions and further isolation reaction from in five russia the foreign ministry says russia of the price of the can any kind of nuclear activity russia is going to push through getting through this in fact they say it's the only way possible through diplomacy that is to say not threats and through dialogue at the same time they are strongly encouraging in fact demanding that north korea one abandon any nuclear weapons programs and to do not defy the u.n. security council and follow their resolutions. or let's get some more reaction now from independent news or so james corbett joining us live here on the program a pleasure to see you want thanks for coming on so quickly we've certainly seen over the years a lot of a carrot sticking certainly from washington the capitol hill towards pyongyang going back to the days of clinton george w.

. >> it has been almost a year since kim jong-un the third son of kim jong-il took power in north korea after his father's death. >> the other sons were perceived to be losers and this was the one who had the potential to be a leader. >> there are some who look at this as an opportunity perhaps he wouldn't be as ruthless. >> he made some statements that indicate he is a little hipper than his father was. he allowed his wife to be shown on tv. he appeared with life size character churs -- caricatures of mickey house. >> he amowed them women to dress in a more western fashion. >> there is little difference between him and his father and grandfather. one of the first things he did upon succeeding his father was to issue a shoot to kill order to north korean order guards. he said shoot anybody in the back who is trying to escape. >> they risk everything. they know when they leave north korea they are risking death. >> in 2001 mike kim left everything left behind in chicago and moved to northern china to help north korean detectors. >> lived in the china border hiding out with the north kore

. >> it has been almost a year since kim jong-un the third son of kim jong-il took power in north korea after his father's death. >> the other sons were perceived to be losers and this was the one who had the potential to be a leader. >> there are some who look at this as an opportunity perhaps he wouldn't be as ruthless. >> he made some statements that indicate he is a little hipper than his father was. he allowed his wife to be shown on tv. he appeared with life size character churs -- caricatures of mickey house. >> he amowed them women to dress in a more western fashion. >> there is little difference between him and his father and grandfather. one of the first things he did upon succeeding his father was to issue a shoot to kill order to north korean order guards. he said shoot anybody in the back who is trying to escape. >> they risk everything. they know when they leave north korea they are risking death. >> in 2001 mike kim left everything left behind in chicago and moved to northern china to help north korean detectors. >> lived in the china border hiding out with the north kore

zero heartbur >> it has been almost a year since kim jong-un the third son of kim jong-il took power in north korea after his father's death. >> the other sons were perceived to be losers and this was the one who had the potential to be a leader. >> there are some who look at this as an opportunity perhaps he wouldn't be as ruthless. >> he made some statements that indicate he is a little hipper than his father was. he allowed his wife to be shown on tv. he appeared with life size character churs -- caricatures of mickey house. >> he amowed them women to dress in a more western fashion. >> there is little difference between him and his father and grandfather. one of the first things he did upon succeeding his father was to issue a shoot to kill order to north korean order guards. he said shoot anybody in the back who is trying to escape. >> they risk everything. they know when they leave north korea they are risking death. >> in 2001 mike kim left everything left behind in chicago and moved to northern china to help north korean detectors. >> lived in the china border hiding out with

it's north korea's first nuclear test under its new leader kim jong-un. head of president obama's state of the union speech. analysts believe it's a way for kim jong-un to force the president to acknowledge north korea during tonight's state of the union address. >>> speaking of that we are 11 hours away from the state of the union. the annual speech in which the president gives a progress report on the nation, and outlines his goals for the coming year. one item deals with the longest war in the nation's history. cnn's jake tapper broke the story. the president will announce by this time next year, 34,000 u.s. troops will have returned from afghanistan. this will cut the u.s. forces there in half. cnn national political correspondent jim accost a is in washington with a preview of the speech. good morning, jim. >> reporter: good morning. a lot of folks in washington will watch these dueling responses to the president's state of the union tonight. an aide to senator marco rubio say the two responses to the state of the union do not mean the gop is divided

this is kim jong-un our viewers are going off over this northofs korea video, find out how a new threatd be among us. d only! all stations come over to mithis is for real this time. step seven point two one two. rify and lock. command is locked. fi seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting today's leading companies to places beyond it. siemens. answers.

. >> so what is going on with kim jong-un? is there going to be another underground nuclear test?they will conduct another explosion of a nuclear twice, which is a hydrogen bomb, much stronger. >> why are they doing this? >> they're doing it because of the sanctions that were levied, because of the launch of the space vehicle? >> don't they realize these steps will only cause more problems for north korea? >> well, they certainly do, they're caught in this vicious spiral. we're all going down in this spiral at the moment, they have to find some way to pull back at the brink? >> do you think -- kim jong-un, we don't know much about him, other than he is 30 years old. >> yes, he has to balance the hard line government -- he is not having to give the hard-liners a little more say, as opposed those who are more interested in engaging the world. >> it sounds like he is trying to prove he is a tough guy to the establishment, if you will, in that area? >> yes, because he has been taking away their benefits, diverting the defense budget to the economy in the last ten months or so. >> does

this is kim jong-un our viewers are going off over this north

it is its third test but the first under kim jong un. the international community is condemning north korea's's nuclear test. the european union says this poses a tres to regional and international peace. they also say that this defies security council resolutions which were echoed by other nations. faye harford county schoolteacher is accused this noon of having sex with a 15- year-old student. maryland state police arrested and charged amanda miller at north carper high school. the alleged victim is a 15-year- old boy. he claimed the two were having sexual relations since december of last year. miller is out of jail after posting $50 -- $50,000 bond. >> we are seeing sunshine break out, temperatures warming up close to 50 degrees. that is what we're reporting at the airport. the wind coming out the west at 70 miles per hour. it will stay that way through the early afternoon. 54 downtown, in the upper 40's in the northwest suburbs. expecting temperatures in the low to mid 50's. increasing clouds tonight as the track the next farm system

orders.this is north korea's first with the country under control of its new leader - kim jong un, whossumed. jennifer davis s in pashingtonnwith reacttonn & reaction. 3 3 in thh wakeeof news that nortt korea has successfully tessed a nucllar weapon --the u-n security council holds an & pmergency meeting - condemningg the test, promising ffrther action.rice says: "north korea's continued work on its nuclear and missile proorams, &pserioussy undermines reeional -3 and international peaae and secuuity, aad threatees he security of a number of &couutries iicluding the nited &&pstates." orrh koreans celebrated the undergroundd & tst thaa triggered an - earthquakk around 5 point 00 the communiit overnment says the device was pminiaaurized.. hat means it could be placcd onna ballistii missile warhead 3 nationnis working onaaaa&& & and potentialll reach countries as ffr away as the u--. china, who has defendeddpyongyang's actions 3 test while presiddnt obama theeunnted states remains koreannprovocations nd steadfast in our defenne commitments to allies in thh regionn" but dealing with north k

kim jong-un and north korean people are basketball fans. i love everyone, period, end of story.his morning, is it right for dennis rodman to be in north korea? facebook.com/carolcnn, or tweet e me @carolcnn. u have to get tht done as well. jackie, tell me why somebody should bring they're car here to the ford dealership for service instead of any one of those other places out there. they are going to take care of my car because this is where it came from. price is right no problem, they make you feel like you're a family. get a synthetic blend oil change, tire rotation and much more, $29.95 after $10.00 rebate. if you take care of your car your car will take care of you. how we get there is not. we're americans. we work. we plan. ameriprise advisors can help you like they've helped millions of others. to help you retire your way, with confidence. ♪ that's what ameriprise financial does. that's what they can do with you. let's get to work. ameriprise financial. more within reach. >>> good morning. thank you so much for being with me. i'm carol costello at 30 minutes past the hour

talking about kim jong-un. appears to be following in his father's footsteps talking tough against the united states as well as the west. trying to flex his muscle a little bit by building up the country's military and keeping the folks there isolated. so i want to talk to michael holmes about this because, michael, we've seen his father, of course, starved his own people, built up ace huge military. now you've got the son who seems as if he's got something to prove. how significant tis when you look at this kind of test, the underground test done today? >> that's a very good point. partly why he's doing what he's doing, to separate himself from his dad, be his own man if you like. i think you could call it hubris, call it tactical. he wants to be the tough guy in front of his people and in front of the world. the guy standing up to the u.s. and the u.n., the evil ones on the youtside who want to do in north korea. there is a tactical side in the military sense. if he wants to build a nuclear weapon small enoug

necessary rodman and three globetrotters are in north create to run a basketball camp invited by kim jong-un fan of the 1990's chug -- chicago bulls. >> rodman tweeted this today saying it is true i'm in north korea, looking forward to sitting down with kim jong-un, worm in north korea. it would be something if the threat of nuclear annihilation was averted by-product plan and the gallon -- globetrotters. jimmy kimmel airs weeknights at abc7 following abc7 news at 11 and then "nightline." >> president obama taught members of congress -- president obama's top members of congress will be in washington, dc at the capitol when a monument of rosa parks is unveiled, the first full sized capitol of an african-american woman inside the capitol. she launched the civil rights movement when she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger in 1955 in alabama. >> listen up, the slump in the afternoon could not be due to a lack of caffeine but what is hanging over our head. >> you will find out just ahead. >> an air rage, what set off a traveler at an overseas airport. >> coming up 6:00, the

but after its third nuclear test, analysts believe kim jong-un isn't interested. >> i think north koreaest her through these provocative acts. i think this nuclear test will be one of many, traditional, nontraditional, military, paramilitary, and even cyber they'll use everything to see what president park's mettle is, what she is made of. >> reporter: kim jong-un may have found a formidable adversary. park geun-hye with top office in a male-dominated soelt. >> park geun-hye joins a small but elite group of female heads of state around the world. only 18 other female presidents or prime ministers out of almost 200 countries. the most well known are germany's angela merkel and australia's julia gillard but women rule in liberia, argentina and a dozen other countries. that's pretty cool, huh? when is it going to happen here? >> that's up to you. my people have already done that. >> julia. but not very popular. >> you can't vote, though. >> i can vote. yeah, i've got the passport. >>> stick around coming up in "around the world" -- >> the pope's last week before retirement and comes at a t

he tweeted it's true, i'm in north korea looking forward to meeting with kim jong-un. wouldn't it be something if the threat of nuclear annihilation was averted by dennis rodman and the harlem globetrotters? tlc announced their show "here comes hoon knee boo boo" will soon be on the air in australia, latin america, the netherlands. it's kind of our way of releasing the cracken on the rest of the world. the show will not be called "here comes honey boo boo." in other countries it will be translated "cheese monster battled type 2 diabetes." apparently it is already airing overseas. in fact, it is the number three most popular show in poland. and that's not a polish joke. that is the truth, it really is. personally, i'm not in favor of exporting our reality tv shows to other countries. deporting our reality shows, yes. but exporting, no. it makes us look dumber than we are. the producers said one of the challenges of airing the show in other countries is translating the boo boo clan's unique style of speech and they're hoping that this product will help. >> learning a new

look who's all chummy with north korea's kim jong-un. dennis rodman.here as a basketball diplomat of sorts along with the camera crew filming for the vice series on hbo. rodman allegedly told the north korean leader, quote, you have a friend for life. >>> up next, the army private accused of leaking classified material pleads guilty but not to the most serious charge of aiding the enemy. we'll have a live update on that. >>> also, a "news nation" "gut check" on the claim of bob woodward he was threatened by the white house. can i get the smith contract, please? thank you. that's three new paper shredders. [ boris ] put 'em on my spark card. [ garth ] boris' small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase every day. great businesses deserve unlimited rewards. read back the chicken's testimony, please. "buk, buk, bukka!" [ male announcer ] get the spark business card from capital one and earn unlimited rewards. choose 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase every day. told you i'd get half. what's in your wallet? told you i'd get half. chances

kim jong-un is quite a basketball fan. they will hold a basketball camp for kids in north korea. it all being filmed for an upcoming hbo documentary. thanks for joining us today, everybody. i'm fresh out of time. but "around the world" is next. >>> i'm suzanne malveaux. >> i'm michael holmes. >> welcome to "around the world." egypt, a freak accident, hot air balloon explodes in the a plummets to the ground, 18 people dead. a live report. >>> vatican city, learning more about the future and what it holds for pope benedict xvi, final week cloud by scandal. >> the dow rallying from yesterday's big loss but not so for world markets. italy's election causing uncertainty. the government, europe's third largest economy, facing a deadlock. >>> egypt, tourists flying high above ancient egyptian sites plunging to their deaths when a hot air balloon explodes and crashes. >> 18 people have died. the local government has banned all other hot air balloon flights for now. it happened in luxor. the latest on the investigation. >> ian, let's start with what the theory is at the moment. there are

north korea's leader kim jong-un is said to be a basketball fan. >>> a peewee hockey coach in vancouver, canada, was caught on video tripping two players during a post-game handshake. the coach has been sentenced to 15 days in jail for assault. >>> at an lpga golf tournament in thailand, a 17-year-old hit a hole in one in her first professional tornado. the tee shot by ariya jutanugarn landed softly on the green, slowly in the cup. she didn't realize what happened. quite a start to her career. >> announcer: "early today" sports is brought to you by touch of gray. get rid of some gray, never all. >>> just ahead, audrey hepburn returns to a tv near you. >>> and an australian billionaire wants to build a "titanic 2" a state of the art ship. based on the original next. >>> welcome back. let me take you through our end of february forecast. as we go throughout the next two days look at a quiet weather day today. clouds on the increase. most of your day should be dry. temperatures not bad for this time of year, 50s in the northwest getting into the 60s in northern california, southern cal few

. -- kim jong-un el. the north has told china more tests are planned. the european union has agreed to begin random dna checks on meat products to try to stop the spread of horse meat contamination. as more and more beef products are found to contain horse meat, feed processors, retailers, and government are all rejecting blame. reports on a confidence crisis for consumers. >> frank godfrey is an old fashioned a butcher's shop. >> before supermarkets, at this was where the british but the meat. -- bought their meat. what you see is what you get. >> it has become so large. it has become a massive machine. there is a lot of people in that machine. the more they squeeze, something has to give. >> in today's market, this may be the only place to find meet with absolute confidence, but it comes as -- at a higher price. >> to discover exactly how complex the modern food chain has become. selling to agents in another who sell to meet processing plants. that is before it reaches your local supermarket. it does not inspire confidence. the latest labeling scandal

it is known that the young leader, kim jong un loves michael jordan.idn't get michael jordan, but -- >> he is a former chicago bull. >> five-time nba champ. >> sure. >> so i'm not sure whether the nose rings and tattoos and all the other -- >> how is that going to play with kim jong un? >> you see the way -- it's the most regimented society in the word. i think the fact that they love basketball as much as they do, this is going to be an exciting trip. they're shooting an hbo movie. >> the pyongyang generals. we'll see how they do. >> andrea mitchell, a little bit impressed. i think you're going back on the road. we'll see you back here tomorrow. >> thanks for sitting in. >> well, it's always enjoyable. to my honor. up next, we'll head live to rome, one of the final days of pope benedict continue to be overshadowed by scandal and what we're going to call him in his retirement. we had never used a contractor before and didn't know where to start. at angie's list, you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare written by people just lik

it was the first under this new, young, korean leader, kim jong un, and potentially, they claim at least, set off by a miniaturized device, which could indicate they have made big progress on getting a small weapon on top of a missile. they just did a rocket test in december. and the problem, the threat would be are they advancing to the point where they could potentially reach the continental united states with perhaps a lucky shot? >> all right, andrea mitchell, thanks. and we are going to somehow find room for chuck todd tonight, but we will scrunch together. we will see all of you later on. and stay with us here on nbc, of course. full coverage of the state of the union address beginning 9 eastern here on this nbc station. >>> to another front, we are learning more tonight about the weeks and months that have led up to the pope's surprise resignation, a closely held secret that was apparently planned for quite some time. we are also getting new details about how this transition will work involving, after all, the abdication of a living former pope, something the church hasn't experie

kim jong-un attended a banquet in their northern and authorities decorated them with medals during a visit that lasted three weeks. >>> the people trying to clean up after the disaster in fukushima have faced no end of challenges. they've struggled to remonth radioactive substances from all the water used to cool the waters. experts said doing that efficiently would be difficult bath scientist from egypt is well on his way. >> reporter: the professor works at the research institute north of tokyo. the egyptian scientist has developed a new substance that removes radioactive cesium from water. during the crisis the nuclear plant at fukushima produced massive quantity. >> i am using this technology for fukushima. >> reporter: this is where he works the national institute for material science. this is what was developed. the powder place significant role in extracting radioactive materials from water. an expert in nanotechnology, he is studying a material called h.o.m.. the particles are invisible to the naked eye as are its many holes. each about one millionths of a millimeter in dimt.

it has been just over a week since north korea successfully conducted the nuclear test and since kim jong-un took power in december 2011. >>> a detective killed in the man hunt for christopher dorner will be laid to rest today. 35-year-old jeremiah mckay was killed after exchanging gunfire with dorner. he's survived by a wife and two children. >>> and happy birthday to former "frasier" star kelsey grammer. he turns 58 today. >>> all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments on those stories and the best political analysis on msnbc. and tonight, be sure to watch "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. >>> and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. details on new research that may answer the age-old question, why do women talk so much more than men? >>> and a texas mom tells the emotional and uplifting story of the miraculous surgery that saved her baby daughter's life. >>> now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm mara schiavocampo. thanks for watching "early today." just your first stop

. >> all this said day after north korea announced that kim jong-un had made a rare decision. all-digital eyes are on the remote mountain range in the northeast of his country, where south korean media reported a delegation of officials had been observed. >> after some of the worst fighting in years in myanmar, kachin rebels are being held in a town on the chinese border. myanmar's military has been using fighter jets, helicopter gunships, and artillery to seize rebel outposts. security forces in mali have captured a top rebel commander. government forces say mohamed moussa ag mouhamed was caught near the new border -- near the border. last week, french and malian troops regained control of three cities that had been held by al qaeda-linked fighters. the french air force is continuing its campaign in northern mali. we have the latest from the capital, bamako. >> the french have been carrying out more airstrikes against kidal in the northeast of mali and also a nearby town. they are targeting fuel storage , arms caches, and training bases. it seems as though this military campa