A German tabloid leaks purported excerpts from Germanwings Flight 9525 cockpit voice recorder audio. Iranian nuclear talks become more intense. And March Madness has boiled down to the Final Four.
It’s Monday, and here are the 5 things to know for your New Day.
GERMANWINGS INVESTIGATION
‘Open the door!’: The pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 yelled these words to the co-pilot as the flight descended, according to a German tabloid. “Bild” published what it claimed was a summary of a transcript from the plane’s cockpit voice recorder. It said co-pilot Andreas Lubitz locked the flight deck door and put the plane on a rapid descent into the mountains after the pilot left to go to the bathroom. The pilot banged on the door and pleaded with Lubitz while passengers screamed. The French agency investigating the crash said it was dismayed by the leak of the voice recording transcript.
IRAN NUCLEAR TALKS
Deadline nears: Tuesday’s the deadline for an agreement, and talks over Iran’s nuclear ambitions heating up. Western officials say the details are getting clearer, but there are snags over limits on Iranian research and the pace of lifting U.N. sanctions. At least one person doesn’t want to see a deal – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the potential agreement “is fulfilling our deepest fears.” And Congress is still threatening additional sanctions against Iran, which could scuttle the deal.
NEW YORK BLAST
Bodies found: Crews searching the site of last week’s building blast and collapse in New York’s East Village found two bodies in the rubble yesterday. Officials believe they are the two people reported missing after the blast. The men were thought to have been at a sushi restaurant when the explosion occurred. One of them was on a date at the restaurant and had gone to the back to pay when the explosion hit.
INDIANA LAW
Not changing it: Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is standing firm. Concerns that the state’s new “religious freedom” law will allow businesses to turn away LGBT customers are just the result of “misinformation and misunderstanding,” he says. Pence also said he wouldn’t add protections based on sexual orientation to the state’s anti-discrimination laws. His decision to sign into law the “religious freedom” measure that allows Indiana businesses to cite their religious beliefs as a legal defense has triggered an intense backlash against his state.
MARCH MADNESS
Fantastic four: Kentucky, Duke, Michigan State and Wisconsin. They’ll face off in the Final Four in Indianapolis. First tip-off on Saturday: Duke vs. Michigan. Then top seed Kentucky battles Wisconsin. Kentucky is undefeated this season and is trying to become the NCAA’s first undefeated champion in decades. Maybe the nation will be treated to a Kentucky-Duke final. Exciting things happen when these two teams get together in the tournament.
College basketball's time to shine
Those are your five biggies for the day. Here are a couple of other things that have the Internet buzzing.
Brady jumps: Wonder if the hearts of New England Patriots fans everywhere stopped when they watched this video of Tom Brady jumping off a cliff.
My cat bodyguard: Watch a cat leap to this baby’s defense.
Wake up: This German shepherd wants his playmate to wake up and play right now!
Dancing machine: Watch this kid break out some nifty dance moves at a recent NCAA men’s basketball tournament game.