Good morning, and happy Tuesday. Here are six of the top stories we are following this morning at NBC News:
1. Iranian man on Malaysian flight 'not likely' terrorist
A 19-year-old Iranian has been identified as the man who boarded the missing Malaysia Airlines jet using a stolen passport, although authorities say it’s “not likely” he was a member of a terrorist group. Police believe he was trying to seek political asylum in Germany. Read more in NEWS.
2. Children suffering in Syrian conflict’s third-year anniversary
As Syria’s crisis reaches its third anniversary this week, a new report is highlighting how the country’s youngest victims have been displaced, deprived of education and proper medical attention. NBC News is featuring a live documentary that will unfold today and Wednesday, following the lives of Syrian children over 48 hours on NBCNews.com, TODAY and Nightly News. Read more in NEWS.
3. Japanese struggling to rebuild after tsunami disaster
Some 267,000 Japanese are still living in temporary housing and other makeshift facilities three years after the devastating earthquake and tsunami that claimed more than 18,000 lives. Meanwhile, Japan is continuing its production of a huge and lightly guarded stockpile of plutonium. Read more in NEWS.
4. Man accused of murdering Holly Bobo to appear in court
Zachary Rye Adams is expected to be arraigned today in a Tennessee court for the 2011 kidnapping and murder of Bobo, a 20-year-old nursing student who vanished from her home. Adams’ family previously told NBC News that they believed her abductor had lived nearby. Police have yet to release details linking Adams to Bobo. Read more in NEWS.
5. Pistorius trial: Olympian gains composure during latest testimony
Oscar Pistorius remained calm as a pathologist continued testimony today in the sprinting star’s murder trial in a South African court. On Monday, Pistorius loudly retched and threw up into a bucket as the pathologist provided graphic details of Reeva Steenkamp’s autopsy. Pistorius is accused of killing Steenkamp, his girlfriend, at their home last year. Read more in NEWS.
NBC News' Rohit Kachroo is in the Pretoria court:
6. Photo reveals Pacific castaway after washing ashore
Pictures obtained by NBC News show fisherman Jose Salvador Alvarenga, 37, looking emaciated and disheveled a day after he washed ashore on the Marshall Islands in January. Alvarenga claims he spent 13 months lost at sea. Read more in NEWS.
… What’s trending today?
A 3-year-old boy craving cupcakes for dinner made his best argument to his mother for why a snack was more appropriate than a proper meal.
The tiny debater named Mateo goes as far as admonishing his mom, and calls her by her first name: “Linda, honey, just listen,” he tells her.
His mom caught the exchange on video and uploaded it to YouTube last month — and it's now going viral:
