Good morning. Here are some of the stories we're following today:
1. U.S. tries to ease tensions with Israel over Netanyahu speech
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington on Sunday with plans to address Congress on Tuesday. The Obama administration has made clear that it doesn't approve the address, and the president has declined to meet with Netanyahu, saying publicly that he didn't want to be seen as intervening in Israel's upcoming elections. Netanyahu, who was invited to address Congress by House Speaker John Boehner, is seeking re-election. But on Sunday, Secretary of State John Kerry said Netanyahu was "welcome to speak in the United States, obviously." And State Department officials were sure to point out that the Obama administration has defended Israel's interests on multiple occasions. Read more in NEWS.
2. Moscow march honors slain Putin critic
More than 50,000 people marched in Moscow on Sunday in honor of virulent Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov, who was gunned down late Friday. Nemtsov had planned to appear Sunday at a rally protesting Russia's aggression in Ukraine — but instead his supporters flooded the streets chanting, "Russia without Putin." A spokesman for Putin called Nemtsov's killing a "provocation," and Putin ordered Russia's top law enforcement officers to investigate the killing. No suspects have been identified. Read more in NEWS.
3. Twitter reviewing alleged ISIS threat to co-founder
Twitter said Sunday night that it was working with law enforcement agencies to investigate whether purported ISIS-related threats against co-founder Jack Dorsey were real. Under a logo that includes the central image of ISIS' widely known black flag, a message addressed Dorsey directly and admonished Twitter for having shut down ISIS-related accounts, warning, "We always come back." "Our security team is investigating the veracity of these threats with relevant law enforcement officials," Twitter said in a statement to CNBC on Sunday night. Read more in NEWS.
4. Another morning commute hampered by winter weather
New York City already beat its monthly average of snow for March, with 4.9 inches on the first day, when the city usually only picks up an average of 3.9 inches in the pre-spring Month. Boston inched closer to breaking its all-time record for the most snow in one winter — adding 2 inches to 101.9 inches, just 3.8 inches away from topping the record of 107.6 inches in a season, set in 1995-96. New York and New England can expect more winter weather later in the week as a storm will spread through the Rockies and the Plains before heading east. Read more in WEATHER.
5. Suspect in U.S. blogger’s death in Bangladesh arrested
The man suspected of killing Avijit Roy, a U.S. blogger and critic of religious extremism, was being interrogated, Bangladesh's anti-terrorism unit said Monday. Farabi Shafiur Rahman confessed to killing Roy, who was hacked to death Thursday while returning from a book fair. His wife and fellow blogger, Rafida Ahmed, suffered head injuries in the attack and lost a finger. She is still in the hospital. Read more in NEWS.
6. William Shatner on defense after missing Leonard Nimoy’s funeral
Dismay erupted on social media after William Shatner said on Twitter on Saturday that he wouldn't be able to attend memorial services for his good friend and "Star Trek" co-star Leonard Nimoy because he was at a charity event. Shatner turned to Twitter again on Sunday to defend himself, saying he wasn't able to fly out in time, and his daughters attended the funeral. He then launched into a discussion with fans about Nimoy, answering questions about the actor, who died Friday at the age of 83. Read more in NEWS.
And now this ...
You can mark a Facebook comment or post as offensive, and soon you will also find an option that let's you flag if a post is "threatening or suicidal" so that Facebook, and the suicide prevention groups they've paired with, can reach out to the poster in question. And this isn't all about algorithms and robots. Facebook will have a whole team reviewing the reports to make sure no one is abusing the tool.