good morning. coming up on "early today" breaking news out of the middle east as the israeli air strikes increase in gaza while the death toll on both sides rises. the u.n. security council unanimously demands an investigation of train cars packed with the bodies of the malaysia air flight 17 in the hands of the ukrainian government. the seattle wildfires are worst in the state's history. the most famous -- much, much more for this tuesday, july 22nd. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm dara brown.

violence continues across the middle east this morning as world leaders call for an end to the deadly fighting. early this morning israel bombed five mosques, a stadium, and home of a hamas military chief in the gauze wra strip. more than 100 people were killed in gaza on monday, and at least 25 israeli soldiers have dowed since the ground operation began. the latest air strikes came after the u.n. chief ban ki moon and john kerry met in cairo to push for peace. martin fletcher joins us live from tel aviv, israel. you are there on the ground. are you seeing anything that indicates a hope for a cease-fire today? >> not much, no, dara. there was talk about a humanitarian cease-fire, allowing the fighting for about five hours. israel said no. every indication is that israel wants to keep going until they've achieved its objectives. the focus of the diplomatic activity now is here in jerusalem and in cairo.

the u.n. secretary general ban ki moon is in israel talking to israeli leaders. secretary of state john kerry is in cairo talking to the egyptian president, and palestinian leaders are also being brought in to talk on behalf of hamas. trying to work out an agreement that could be acceptable to both hamas and israel. that, of course, is after egypt did make the proposal about a week ago which hamas rejected and israel did accept. now the fighting is continuing, and an israeli ground offensive is moving slowly but deeper into gaza, continuing its operating in that northern area where the fighting has been fiercest. the big question today is whether or not one israeli soldier has been kidnapped or taken by hamas. hamas claims they have an israeli soldier. israel says they do have one soldier who is missing. they say he is dead, though, presumed dead. killed in the action when the

six other israeli soldiers were killed. now the question is does hamas have leverage over israel or not. dara. >> martin, thank you so much for following this story. we'll be back with more updates. martin fletcher in tel aviv. "nbc nightly news" anchor brian williams interviewed benjamin netanyahu last night. they discussed the escalating violence in the middle east, and netanyahu explained that israel has to defend itself. >> what would you do? what would you do if american cities -- where are you sitting now, brian? it would be rocketed. it would absorb hundreds of rockets. you know what you would say? you would say to your leader, a man has to do what a man hoz to do and a country has to do what a country has to do. we have to defend ours. we tray to do it with the minimal amount of force and targeting military targets as best we can. we have to defend ourselves. no country can live like this. now to the latest of the

downing of flight mh-17. a train carrying the remains of the victims has just arrived in the ukrainian city outside the area where separatists and the ukrainian forces have been fighting. from there they'll be transported to the netherlands. we're also learning that this hour the malaysian air investigators have arrived at the crash site. separatist leaders have also turned over the black boxes of the downed crash to malaysian officials. leaders for the european union will decide today whether to toughen sanctions against russia wra following the downing of the airliner. kier simmons has the latest. >> reporter: train cars packed with bodies were taken away. no one knows when they would be returned to their families. 282 discovered so far, laid on the ground in the hot sun before finally being loaded into a refrigerated railcar. inspected by a team of dutch forensic experts who must identify each individual. >> i have now seen the bodies.

we are starting with the identity process. that's very important to relatives. >> reporter: how long will it take? >> i don't know. >> you don't know how long? >> no, no. >> reporter: they must work around the pro-russian militia accused of shooting down the plane, but a full four days since the crash wreckage still litters the country side. people's bags appear to have been opened, and what cleanup there is is basic. >> with just a car and a bit of rope they try to haul some refuge out of the wart. >> reporter: here bringing on fire trucks, and then finally the only train around is awe torn section of wing. >> international investigators. >> reporter: amid swernt outrage, the prime minister said rebels agreed they would give access. stwloo that was nbc's kier simmons reporting.

now to the pacific northwest. the firefight as new wildfires explode. there are now 33 fires burning in oregon and washington. on the ground hot shot crews are struggling to gain control. in the air tankers are just trying to keep up. in central washington the images look apocalyptic. wildfires four times the size of seattle, and that leaves people little time to get out. >> cars were flying up here, stopping everywhere and saying that we're -- that fire is coming here at 30 miles an hour, and you guys have just a few minutes to get out of here. >> both fires have forced more than 1,200 out and burned down at least 100 homes and buildings. the former father who made headlines for allegedly beating his son's baby-sitter to a bloody pulp is talking. >> my immediate feeling was to kill him so he will never hurt anybody again. >> reporter: 18-year-old raymond folander was in bed with the

11-year-old. the child's father walked in and allegedly lost it. the mugshot of a bloodied and bruised folander went viral. the father says he was lucky. >> my son -- raymond was motionless on my floor. i went to my kitchen to grab a butcher knife. my son came to me and saved his attacker's life. >> reporter: the daytona dad -- they claim he is exploiting the situation. he is asking people to donate $1 million to help rebuild his son's life. so far, however, more than $100 has been donated. moments after receiving the nation's highest award for combat valor, the newest medal of honor recipient turned the spotlight on who he believed the real heroes are. in 2008 a former staff sergeant ryan pitts was a paratrooper in afghanistan. he single-handedly defended an observation post against upwears of three taliban fighters. president obama called it one of

the fiercest battles. >> the real heroes are the nine men who made the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us to return home. it is their name, not mine, that i want people to know. >> reporter: pitt thanked reporters before walking away. he is the ninth living service member to receive the medal of honor for his work in afghanistan. u.s. climate scientists say june was the hottest month in recorded history. meteorologist bill karins has much more on that. good morning. >> yeah, it goes back to 1880. that's how long the records go back. that's a good period of record there. it was also to sdrach your head about climate stuff. they also said the oceans were the warmest that they've seen, but we also have the most ice in the pole that is we've seen since 1982. figure that one out. as far as the fire situation, here's a map that shows you where the active large wildfires are. there's 32 uncontained fires.

only one in california. notice oregon and washington, and a lot of those were sparked by lightning storms. i guess sometimes you have to am get rain and thunderstorms to stop the fires. this is the weather pattern. the hot, dry weather has at least for a day or two going to go away. as far as the rain goes, we're not expecting a lot of rain in the northwest, but you see the radar there. some creeping up from the south there. we're getting into that -- that's a carlton complex fire that we're trying to get that rain on. they're calling it the biggest in the washington state history. today kind of cloudy and cooler with temperatures in the 70s and 80s. exactly what we needed to fight through and cools things off. now, the question is how long

will the cool set of showery weather last for, and i'll give you that answer coming up, and the firefighters probably won't like it. >> we're hoping it will stop fires out there. huh, bill, for that update. just ahead, a hidden camera scandal at one of the most respected hospitals in the country. plus, can you believe it's already been a year? new photos of prince george as britain celebrates his first birthday. nexium®,is now available, without a prescription for frequent heartburn. get complete protection. because the best moments in life aren't experienced from the sidelines. now there's nothing holding you back. this is nexium level protection™. the #1 prescribed acid-blocking brand. now without a prescription for frequent heartburn. get complete protection. nexium level protection™.

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and we're here in detroit,nt michigan, loans helping folks refinance their homes and save money. does it make sense to refinance right now? a lot of times we can lower the monthly payment, we can consolidate debt. okay we just want to make sure that you know your options, and we're here for you. we're not just number crunchers, i specialize in what i do and i care about my clients. from beginning, the middle and to the end. you're going to talk to someone. not a machine. call us today for a mortgage experience that's engineered to amaze. welcome back. a landmark ruling coming on obama care today. the d.c. circuit court will rule. the case challenges the legal alty and subsidies awarded lou the federal health care changes. put simply, can the irs tax people to help others get federal coverage? john hopkins hospital has agreed to pay $190 million to

thousands of victims of a gynecologist. dr. levi used a pin-like camera to capture 1,200 videos and 140 images of women in his examing room. he committed suicide days after a co-worker discovered the device and alerted authorities. a friend of boston bomber joe har tsarnaev was convicted yesterday. he hid a backpack with altered fireworks obstructing an investigation by the fbi. happy birthday to prince george. we learned about this little guy a year ago. we followed the first 12 months with great interest, and yesterday it was grabbing butterflies in such a royal way. let's get down to business. sima mada. good morning. >> apple has recently asked suppliers to produce up to 80

million large screen iphone this is year. it's expected to come with either a 4.7 or 5.5 inch screen. reports say the order is larger than the initial production runs for the iphone 5s and 5c last year. second quarter profits doubled beating wall street's forecast as the video streaming service added 1.7 million subscribers. its growth after netflix increased its price with new customers paying $1 more per month. hillary rodham clinton healthing has crashed in since stepping down as secretary of state. reports say she earned $12 million from her latest book and appearances at corporate events for the likes of goldman saks and the national association of realtors. back to you. >> thanks for that update. next, it is so big it has u.s. security experts worried the threat, too hard to stop. plus, he was one of the nfl's nicest guys ever, but tony dungey is taking heat over michael sams. was it a slam?

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♪ i know now >> this is on "today" get ready for australian teen pop sensation five seconds of summer is on the plaza. they have a special concert series perform wrans. now for a look at what's happening in sports. tony dungey says he would not

have drafted the nfl's first openly gay player michael sam. dungey, the first african-american head coach to win the super bowl and is currently an nbc analyst, told the tampa tribune that he wouldn't want to deal with all of it, adding it's not going to be totally smooth. dungey's comments have been met with some criticism. sam was drafted by the rams and hopes to make the final roster. in baseball david ortiz hit his 453rd career home run last night. beg poppy is now ranked 35th on the all-time homer list. zirjs johnny manziel hasn't played a down yet, but he has the top jersey. he is outselling the likes of super bowl-winning russell wilson, colin kaepernick, and peyton manning. university of miami mascot sebastian walked a long-time hurricane fan down the aisle after recently losing her father. sebastian even wore a special

jersey to commemorate her dad. >> forget about it. >> forget about it. >> forget about it. >> forget about it. >> i'm walking here. i'm walking there. >> i'm walking here. i'm walking there. >> players of the arsenal soccer team did their best new york accent to promote their upcoming friendly against the red bulls in new york. they admit the accents could use some work, but, heck, they are certainly entertaining. up next, spoiler alert. the star wars episode 7 photo that has fans all giddy. why these wrun forms are causing a fashion uproar. you're watching "early today." and "getting major kudos." just look at you. you're being healthy, even in little ways. that's worth celebrating. that's why walgreens created the first program that gives you rewards points just for healthy behavior. so stick with it. you've got a lot of people cheering you on...

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i have some good and bad in the forecast in the northwest. we are watching a storm system slowly moving through, and we are having rain and clouds in the forecast. that's good for the firefighters. bad for you if you like your outdoor plans. again, as we go through wednesday, we'll have a chance for more thunderstorms. the problem is any lightning could cause new fires too. sometimes you just can't win. sometimes it's hard. you can't get that perfectly cloudy forecast with just solid rain. i mentioned as we head wards the weekend, things will warm up. we get tuesday and wednesday your chance for wet weather and rain in the northwest. this is portland, oregon. portland goes up into the low 80s. where the fires are occurring inland on the other side of the mountains, that's where it's going to be in the 90s still, and it will be sunny and dry. we get about a two-day reprieve from summer temperatures.

>> something to look forward to for the weekend. >> it will warm up from here. that's why it's good and bad. it's fwood if you want your summer plans. bad for firefighters. >> thank you, bill. now, we're going to move on to entertainment news, and here's something for star wars fans to get excited about. director j.j. abrams reveals episode 7's new x-wing star fighter. he showed off the latest fighter during his campaign update. philip seymour hoffman wanted to make sure his children weren't spoiled trust fund kids. he left his $35 million fortune to his estranged wife, the mother of his three children. >> those kids won't be bitter at all, will they? it will trickle down. robert downey jr. tops the forbes list of top earning actors. his tony stark character from "iron man" and "the avengers" has reportedly earned him $75 billion. pearlman's front man eddie vetter performed john lennon's "imagine." check it out.

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businessmen wanted in a fatal ferry disaster was found dead. he was the real owner and manager behind the sunken ferry that claimed the lives of more than 300 people. most of them high school students. on nbc news.com appeals judge says guillotine probably best for executions. judge alex kasinski of the ninth u.s. court of appeals says executions are brutal, savannah events and nothing the state tries to do can match that reality, adding the guillotine is best and the electric chair, hanging in a gas cham ber are each subject to occasional mishaps. the firing squad strikes me as the most promising." on another note to some other stories we're following here, police say they randomly

attacked more than 50 homeless people over a year. sometimes with bricks or fence poles. now three new mexico teens admit to killing two so savagely. police say the victims could not be immediately identified. alex rios is 18, and the other two are minors. the three teens are being held on $5 million bond. the white house says the average number of unaccompanied minors crossing the border have dropped by more than half. that's down from 355 today last month. our black and white stripes, the new orange? saginaw county sheriff says he is changing standard outfits, in part, due to pop culture. he told the saginaw news that the brighter look is now viewed as fashionable. as summer rolls, on animals in japan gets a frigid gift. it's part of an annual tradition, and local icemakers give the ice to cool off the

animals. while some are filled with fruit, others are simply ice. the polar bear received over 80 pounds of ice play to play with, and while the animals get the treats, it's the visitors that love to see it. >> it's a polar bear. he should have use every day. >> i'm sure it's nice and cold there too. just to watch him throw the ice around -- >> he is cute. i'm going to send him some ice. >> you want to jump in with some of them? no. ten years later the authors of the 9/11 commission report releases new recommendations. it says the u.s. faces a growing number of threats from new terrorist havens to cyber attackers. it also warns that the american public is growing complacent with the threats. as we mentioned earlier, happy birthday to prince george who turns 1. actress selena gomez celebrates her 22nd, and alex treb ebbing is 74. i'm dara brown. thanks for watching "early today." have a good one.

from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." well good morning everyone, 4:30 i'm scott mcgrew. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon. we begin with breaking news. there is trouble for your morning commute. the chp is on the scene of a deadly overnight crash on highway 101 in sunnyvale. a semitruck and motorcycle collided after 2:30 this morning. the motorcyclist was killed. here's a look at the map, the area we're talking about. northbound 101 near lawrence expressway. right now, two lanes are closed. let's go to mike inouye. this is sure to be impacting the drive. >> yeah, the traffic very light right now, by when you lose half of the freeway, you have some