odds. an awkward meeting in the oval office. the israeli meter visits but publicly opposes obama's plan for peace. defiance. syria, protesters killed in the streets. underwater, tonight, news the mississippi flooding could last a long time. the end of the world? many believe this weekend is it.

this is "nightly news." >> good evening. i'm david gregory in washington, in tonight for brian williams. the buildup to today's oval office meeting between the president and benjamin netanyahu had all the meetingmakings of a showdown. a day after the palestinian state, the israeli leader made it clear he was nut on board. this was more than an awkward day of diplomacy as stable conditions for the middle east and political implications for 2012 at home. >> good evening, david.

the president did a diplomatic dance. he was trying to bridge the rhetorical divide with the israeli prime minister. it was no easy task. 24 hours after igniting many firestorms with the leader of israel, the president tried to cool differences. >> there were differences between us, in the languages. and that's going to happen between friends. >> reporter: the language disagreement, the president's speech that any agreement with the palestinians go back to the israelis behind the border in the 1962 war. today, the president never uttered the phrase 1967 border. but netanyahu did. >> israel is prepared to make generous compromises for peace. it can't go back to the 1967

lines because these lines are indefensible. >> reporter: netanyahu argued the demographics make it impossible to go back. 130 settlements with more than 300,000 israelis reside beyond those lines. the tension in the office was almost clear as he offered a point by point rebuttle. >> as i told you in the conversation, we don't have a lot of margin for error. and because, mr. president, history will not give the jewish people another chance. >> it seemed a little bit like a hectoring college lector, and the president looked a little bit like the student in the lecture who didn't want to be there. >> there was agreement on hamas, who the united states has agreed is a terrorist organization. >> hamas has been and is an organization that has resorted

to terror. it is not a partner for a significant realistic peace process. the president could get another cool reception on sunday morning when he addresses the largest pro-israel american lobby, apac. there, israelis are hoping he is going to announce he'll visit israel next month. white house sources say that's hi highly unlikely. >> i'm joined here by andrea mitchell. what a weekend. it begins with the president saying now more than ever, there's not gault to be a peace deal. it ends far apart. >> reporter: very far apart. some israeli official said were uncomfortable with what was a lecturing tone by the prime minister, but he felt he had to say this to the world, to president obama's face, and on top of that, they had had a call, he called hillary clinton yesterday before the speech, hours before the speech, when they heard the president was

going to use this language sknrx i was told, he didn't shout at her, she dhe didn't scold her, t was really tough. they met one-on-one, canceled a lunch meeting with aides, so they got to the bottom of their disagreements, but it's tough. >> not a peace agreement that's going to start in. >> until the palestinians agree with hamas, both sides agree with that. the next step will be the president's speech on sunday. >> and the 2012 politics are profound. republicans are coming after the president. >> they see a chance to redefine barack obama as they did in 2008 as an opponent of israel. he's going to have to deal with that because they think they can hit him where it hurts, with jewish funding. in that same speech yesterday, president obama had tough words for syria, where there's been a bloody grackdown

on protesters. he said president assad should prove toward democracy or get out of the way, but it was ignored. richard engle is in cairo tonight with more on a violent friday. >> reporter: good evening, david. it was a lot more than ignored. today was one of the bloodiest days so far with at least 30 people killed. and that unlike previous crackdowns which tended to focus on a single city in syria, today it was nationwide targeting anyone who twrieed to go out and demonstrate. amateur video shows demonstrators on a main street. security forces open fire. the demonstrators scramble and take shelter on a side street. the gunfire continues. a police car is son fire. then protesters can be seen carrying a man.

he appears unconscious, shot in the side. keep his head up, they yell. the demonstrators don't give up. they regroup and shout, the people want to topple the regime. president obama yesterday said syrian president bashar al assad must allow dissent or step aside. >> he can lead that transition or get out of the way. >> reporter: syria isn't listening. >> the president is for his own survival. he has decided to crush the opposition, to silence the protesters. what you have seen today is saclear example of the strategy of the syrian government. >> reporter: hundreds of refugees have escaped syria, many entering lebanon. we have been imprisoned, banned from using our minds, our brains, our intellect. in hamas today, they used tear

gas to break up a protest. an activist tries to film him. when he's spotted, a soldier takes aim and fires, but misses. the united states has imposed sanctioned. it's made strong statements, but it doesn't appear to be making much difference. david. richard engle live for us in cairo. thanks very much. dominique strauss-kahn has left his jail cell on bail, but he had to find another place to stay because the fanlsy new york apartment building where his wife had rented an apartment wouldn't take him. he has quit as head of the international monetary fund. he'll be under 24-hour confinement under the security firm used to guard him at all time. it was a week ago he was arrested on charges he sex waem assaulted a hotel housekeeper. the unsettled republican field is starting to take shape.

tim polente is to announce he's making a run for the white house in an event monday in iowa. he'll head to new hampshire. he's seen as a low-key establishment republican who could run as an alternative to mitt romney. another gop candidate, newt gich rich, had a rough week on the campaign trail, after criticizing the house chairman on the budget. paul ryan will respond when i sit down with him on the program this sunday. now to the mississippi river flood. the slow-moving disaster is set to hit areas in the path of the spillway that was opened last week, but there is some good news. the national weather service lowered its flood crest forecast for butte larose by 2 1/2 feet. here's ann thomas. >> reporter: the flood water from the mississippi is a silent, menacing stalker in mississippi, blocking the road

to the management area in the morganza spillway. >> it had been drowning. >> reporter: the water is claiming deer and creating new places for alligators to swim. on the other sigh of the atchafalaya, some homes closest to the river are in it, while those on the other side of the levee are dry. with almost everyone evacuated, the louisiana national guard is ready for what comes next. >> our hope is that this is an exercise in preparedness and an exercise in coming to the aid of a community that i hope we don't have to execute. >> reporter: vicksburg, mississippi, still needs help. this week, they set a new record, reaching 57.1 feet. here, martha can barely see the home she bought in 2004, now submerged in fettered water. >> i don't think i'm going to go back. >> reporter: the flood has been a boon to ronny tyler's

business. but he can't get to his home. >> it gets hectic with the ma mandatory evacuation. >> reporter: the flooded mississippi rolls south at 13 miles per hour, more than double its speed. with historic amoults of freshwater, it's beginning to affect some of louisiana's delicate oyster beds trying to recover from four hurricanes in five years and last year's bp oil spill. >> the oysters die. that's material for new oysters to grow on for next year. >> reporter: and there's more trouble on the mississippi tonight. a segment of the river is closed near baton rouge after some barges broke loose and three sank. the coast guard is investigating. david. >> anne thompson, thanks very much. the professional wrestler known as macho man randy savage

died today in a car crash in tampa. he was a legend in the wrestling world, known for his sunglasses and bandannas, his gravelly voice, and the woman named elizabeth by his side. he lost control of his jeep wrangler at about 9:30 this morning. he was 58. when we come back on this friday evening, meet the man who has been tasked with turning around one of the country's biggest public school systems. and later, unlikely friends giving girls a hope at a better life and making a difference. i can't enjoy my own barbecue with these nasal allergies.

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tremendous pressure. miguel almaguer spent some time with someone who knows all about them first' hand as part of our "education nation. kwaes. >> chris, nice to meet you. nice to meet you. >> superintendent john daisy knows his schools are failing. they're among the most crowded in the nation with low test scores and a high drop-out rate, 30%. this is the budget that shrunk nearly $1.5 billion in two years. >> we're catastrophically underfunding education. we're turning our back on funding public schools. just one month into his new job, he's tackling tough issues. dropping by class rooms to see first hand the struggles students face every day. are you a senior? how is it going? >> opportunities outnumber counselors 87-1. last week, protests erupted in

city streets. 7,000 employees could lose their jobs this year. they may be unique in their size, but the district and their problems are representative of what is happening across the country. but he's bringing fresh ideas to the table. he wants new standards for evaluating teachers and is promoting a way to use private money to supplement public funds. >> they can't look to the state and say we need additional revenue. they're facing their own enrms budget deficit. >> daisy hoped to make every student college eligible. a monumental task for students who struggle with basic reading and writing. 73% of the students at lausd are latino. >> it's a social rights and civil rights issue. >> lofty goals in a challenging time for a man committed to solving problems in and out of the classroom. miguel almigar, nbc news, los

angeles. on wall street, stocks fell. the dow finishes down just over 93 points. coming up next, is the world as we know it about to come to an end? the guy who says that it is, and what he wants the rest of us to know. diane was already the chief operating officer at a national tissue bank, when she decided to get her masters in health care administration. by choosing a university that connects working students to faculty who are also leaders in their fields, she was able to apply her studies to the real world, and help more people, much quicker. my name is diane wilson, i deliver the best gifts on earth, and i am a phoenix. [ male announcer ] university of phoenix is proud to sponsor education nation. because we believe an educated world is a better world. you can take the heat. 'til it turns into heartburn, you've got what it takes: zantac. it's strong, fast lasting relief. so let them turn up the heat.

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>> reporter: from northern california -- >> day 21 will be the day of judgment. >> reporter: to central florida -- >> you will see the glory of god. >> reporter: and everywhere in between. >> there's going to be an end to the world. >> reporter: the word is tomorrow our world ends at supp suppertime. that calculation from this 89-year-old. >> it will begin with a huge earthquake. >> reporter: who, since his predictions, has gone underground. >> could you interview him next week? absolutely not. it will not happen because he won't be here after tomorrow. >> reporter: camping claims tomorrow is the rapture, when true believers are taking to heaven. why tomorrow? it's all in the math. s >> if you go from 4990 b.c. and add 1211 minus 1 -- >> it's clear the biblical story of noah's ark when the earth flooded, exactly 7,000 years

ago, set the tables for another apock almost, tomorrow, some are taking the news rather well. >> cooking for my husband or cleaning up the house, done. >> reporter: but others spent the day warning that those who do not accept jesus now will be left behind. >> there is no one who believes this message along with me. absolutely. no one. no one. >> you think -- >> crazy. >> nobody ever says, you know what, we were wrong? this was a completely bad idea. >> let's say tomorrow is the end. what would you do? me, i think i'll relax and lissing to some r.e.m. ♪ it's the end of the worth as we know it ♪ >> kerry sanders, nbc news, clearwater, florida. thanks for that. if contemplating the end of the world is getting you down, this might help. the pharynfamily, new owners of a house in utah got a surprise when they started poking around

in an attic space. $45,000 in cash hiding in a metal box. they could have used the money to 96 up the house, but they decided to give it back. it had been hidden there by the previous owner who stashed the cash without his children knowing about it. they were floored by the honesty. they said it was a simple lesson for their own kids. and by the way, the name of the town where it all happened, bountiful. when we come back, next, dozens of girls getting an opportunity that's making a difference stwauz of the time-out people who brought their vision to life. ♪ ♪ hit the road, jack ♪ and don't you come back no more ♪ ♪ no more, no more, no more ♪ hit the road, jack ♪ and don't you come back no more ♪ [ male announcer ] want your weeds to hit the road? hit 'em with roundup extended control. one application kills weeds and puts down a barrier to stop new ones for up to four months.

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reported sometimes less than two weeks after starting plavix. finally, from us tonight, our making a difference report. again tonight, it's about the lives of girls growing up in one of the poorest places on earth, in kenya. last night, maria menounos reported on one program making their lives better. tonight, she introduce s us to some extraordinary people. one, an american who had the persistence to create a refuge for a group of little girls. >> reporter: american college student jessica wanted to live where she volunteered in kenya's

largest slum, kibera. >> i felt like i had so much to learn. >> reporter: there, she met kennedy, a home-grown activist born and raised in kibera, a place with high danger and low sanitation, especially for girls. >> it's dangerous for american girls to come and live. >> kennedy was a street boy, struggling, fighting, making his own way. earning a dollar, two dollars a day. he would give it all away. instead of asking them to pay back the loans, he would ask them to pass it forward. >> reporter: they works together, jessica won the trust of the neighborhood, and kennedy won a full scholarship to connecticut. for both, it opened a world they never imagined possible. >> kennedy always talked about wanting to build a school for girls and the other services the community really needed. >> reporter: jessica also coaxed kennedy into applying for a

$10,000 grant. suddenly, they could see a dream realized. >> it was a frenzy. the whole school, i think we built it in four weeks. >> reporter: since 2009, 64 little girls now have free access to health care, food, and a good education. at ages 5 and 6, many are victims of what is common here, sexual abuse, hiv, and hunger. >> i love you. >> i saw video of you, kennedy, taking each girl by the hand, shaking their hand, and saying i love you. >> i welcome them back. it's important. >> reporter: now as kennedy finishes his degrew, jessica runs the school in kibera full time along with a loyal community that helps her also manage a health clinic and community center. an unlikely friendship that has changed not only their lived but so many more. maria menounos, nbc news, kenya. that's our broadcast for

this friday night. thank you for being with us. i'm david gregory. brian williams will be back on monday. in the meantime, have a good weekend. good night.