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Panama stops N. Korean vessel with weapons on board – Barbara Starr reports
CNN has new details today on the violent seizure of a North Korean ship in Panama.
We learn that what was on board may have international implications.
According to statement by Cuba's Foreign Ministry, the equipment found by Panamanian authorities included 10,000 tons of sugar as well as 240 metric tons of obsolete defensive weapons being sent to North Korea for repair and returned to Cuba.
Barbara Starr has the latest.
A senior US official tells CNN that US intelligence had been tracking the ship for days and knew that the Panamanians would stop it.
“Officials now believe the cargo on board was a radar used to help Cuba's SA-2 surface to air missiles hit their targets—and that Cuba was possibly sending it back to North Korea for an upgrade,” Starr reports.
“Bags of sugar marked Cuba, now visible in the cargo, laid on top of the weapons material…Panama is now asking for an international team of inspectors to board the ship and determine exactly what was under those Cuban bags of sugar.”
For details as the story develops, visit CNN.com.
Awaiting Kate and the newest Prince or Princess – Max Foster
Londoners and royal enthusiasts continue to anticipate the birth of England’s newest prince or princess–who is now overdue!
Max Foster is outside Saint Mary's Hospital with the confirmation that last Saturday was the due date. “We are in overdue territory,” Foster reports. “No wonder the family is on tender hooks.”
Prince Charles’ wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, yesterday was caught on microphone saying the family is all waiting for word by the telephone.
“I think by the end of the week, he or she will be there,” she said.
Visit CNN.com for complete coverage on the royal baby.
Martin's family speaks out on verdict – John Zarrella reports
Demonstrators rallied across the country after former neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman was acquitted Saturday of murder, and manslaughter, in the killing of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.
Martin's relatives spoke out on the verdict as well, but their message was one of healing. CNN’s John Zarrella has more on their response.
“The message from Lesha Felton, Trayvon Martin's cousin was clear, direct,” Zarrella reports.
"We don't want this to happen to anyone else again no reason this happens to any other families,” Felton said. “No one should have to go through this."
At Sunday’s service at the church where Martin’s family are members but were not in attendance, "there were certainly feelings of hurt, sadness, disappointment amongst the congregation, anger too,” Zarrella says. “But the bottom line, church members say everyone now must move on.”
Former Pres. GHW Bush to be awarded at White House
He's been out of office for more than two decades, but one legacy of George H.W. Bush's time as leader of the free world will be honored today at the White House.
The former president made volunteer service a key part of his administration a program that continues to shine and will be recognized there.
Dan Lothian has more on that story.
“The year was 1989 and a new president laid out his vision for what he called a new activism, a call to a generation to give service to the nation,” Lothian reports.
“President Bush is the Honorary Chairman of the Point of Light Foundation, now the world's largest service organization coordinating volunteer projects.”
President Obama will honor the Bush legacy and present its Five-Thousandth Award.
Protests, calls for calm after Zimmerman acquitted – George Howell reports
The anger in the streets is ongoing in the wake of the not guilty verdict delivered in the George Zimmerman Trial.
The former neighborhood watch volunteer was acquitted Saturday of murder, and manslaughter, in the killing of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.
Frustration over that decision brought thousands to rallies across the country.
CNN’s George Howell has more on the resounding messages of protest and calls for calm in reaction to the verdict.
Remembering Cory Monteith – Nick Valencia reports
Hollywood this morning is remembering Cory Monteith, a TV star whose bright career was suddenly cut short when he was found dead in a downtown Vancouver hotel room.
CNN's Nick Valencia has more on that tragic news.
“News of the death of 31-year-old ‘Glee’ actor Corey Monteith stunned his closest friends,” Valencia says. “His cause of death was not immediately clear, but at a press conference late Saturday, police ruled out foul play.”
Skyrocketing to fame in 2009 as the lovable, heartthrob quarterback on the hit FOX TV series, Monteith was just beginning to find success, but his troubles have long followed him.
“Since he was 13-year-old, Monteith openly said he battled with his sobriety,” Valencia reports.
“It was just four months ago when the Canadian actor voluntarily checked himself into a rehab facility. His friends and girlfriend were encouraged by his steps to stay clean.”
His friend Adam Shankman spoke on the phone to Monteith just hours before his death.
Shankman shares that Monteith even said, "I'm feeling fantastic again." Shankman explains, "He was obviously referring to that moment he had this year with going to rehab. So I'm like everybody else really devastated and confused by what happened."
DNA evidence points to long-suspected Boston strangler
It was a crime unsolved for decades. Authorities long thought they knew who killed nearly a dozen women in the Boston area in the early 1960s, but they were never sure.
Almost a half century later, CNN’s Susan Candiotti reports, DNA is providing some answers.
“Albert Desalvo confessed to being the notorious Boston strangler, but police never proved it,” Candiotti says.
Of the 11 women the Boston strangler had raped and strangled between 1963 and 64 year, 19-year-old Mary Sullivan is believed to be the Boston strangler's final victim.
“Thanks to new technology, authorities say, they've matched DNA from one of the strangler's relatives to DNA preserved 49 years ago from the crime scene and victim Mary Sullivan,” Candiotti says.
Final moments on Flight 214 – Miguel Marquez reports
The investigation into the crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 214 continues with emerging details today, but it's likely to be many months before it becomes clear what caused the Boeing 777 to land in the runway.
The plane slammed into a runway at San Francisco International Airport, killing two and injuring dozens.
As Miguel Marquez reports, we now have a better sense of what happened seconds before the crash.
“At about 35 seconds out and 500 feet up the pilot told investigators he saw a bright light and in response looked at the controls in the cockpit, including the speed indicator,” Marquez reports.
According to the head of the NTSB, “At about 500 feet the airspeed was approximately 134 knots.”
“The 350 ton plane was already below the 137 knot speed to which the pilot believed he had set the auto throttle,” Marquez explains.
“And for the first time we are hearing that at nine seconds before impact, 100 feet above the ground one of the pilots expresses concern about the aircraft's speed.”
The NTSB says they are trying to determine who said that, a part of its commitment to put everything it can into finding out what caused this crash.
Follow along at CNN.com for more on the investigation.
Defense set to make its final argument to the jury – George Howell reports
After days of intense drama at the George Zimmerman trial, the prosecution made its case yesterday. The defense makes its closing pitch today.
Zimmerman’s attorneys will argue to the jury today why their client is not guilty of murder or manslaughter in the death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.
CNN’s George Howell is in Sanford, Florida with more from the courtroom.
“Prosecutor Bernie De La Rionda went into great detail, pointing out inconsistencies in Zimmerman's story, from the national television interview Zimmerman did, to the video reenactment he conducted with police,” Howell reports.
“The prosecutor then picked apart Zimmerman's account of what happened.”
Tune in to CNN as the trial continues.
The stuff we forget on our cars – Jeanne Moos reports
CNN first brought you a video of a very helpful motorcyclist returning a coffee cup to a driver.
Well, that motorcyclist is now telling his story to our Jeanne Moos.
“Riding on his motorcycle, Nate Bos is used to seeing the gorgeous snowcapped mountains near Orem, Utah,” Moos says. ‘What caught his eye was the snow white of the cup on the black SUV's bumper.”
Nate says, “When I saw the cup, I was like ‘this lady's got a cup on her bumper.’
“To the rescue,” Moos says, “Nate gave chase.”
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