1. U.N. SAYS SYRIAN REBELS USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS
United Nations officials said Sunday that investigators have uncovered "strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof of the use of sarin gas" by Syrian rebels — not government forces. Opposition fighters called the reported findings a "big lie." Maj. Gen. Adnan Sillo, a defector from the Syrian military, said the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had crossed President Obama's "red line" by using chemical weapons against civilians many times. [New York Times]
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2. OBAMA READIES FOR NEW JOBS TOUR
President Obama is preparing to start a tour around the country to rally support for his policies aiming to create jobs and improve the economy, White House officials said Sunday. Obama will make the first in his series of day trips on Thursday, when he'll visit Austin, Texas. Obama has often said jobs are his priority, but his economic policies have been overshadowed by gun control, immigration, and other hot-button issues. [Reuters]
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3. ISLAMIST PROTESTS IN BANGLADESH LEAVE 15 DEAD
At least 15 people reportedly have been killed in clashes between police and Islamist protesters in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, on Sunday and Monday. Riots erupted after tens of thousands of Islamist activists gathered to call for the overwhelmingly Muslim country's government to impose more Islamic policies, such as a new blasphemy law, greater segregation of men and women, and more strict Islamic education. Police tried to disperse the crowds with stun grenades and rubber bullets. [BBC News]
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4. CEMETERIES TURN AWAY BODY OF TAMERLAN TSARNAEV
A Worcester, Mass., funeral home owner has accepted the body of suspected Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev, but can't find a place to bury the remains. Peter Stefan, owner of Graham Putnam & Mahoney Funeral Parlors, said Sunday that he's calling cemeteries with areas reserved for Muslims, as well as the city of Cambridge, where Tsnarnaev lived. Cambridge City Manager Robert W. Healy said it wouldn't be "in the best interest of 'peace within the city'" to bury Tsnarnaev there. [New York Times]
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5. BRIDE AND FRIENDS DIE IN LIMO FIRE
A bride and four friends were killed when their limousine was engulfed in flames on a San Francisco Bay bridge as they headed to a bachelorette party late Saturday. The driver, Orville Brown, survived, as did four passengers he says he helped get out through the front through a partition. One of the surviving women tried to open a rear door to let the others out, while passersby tried in vain to put out the flames. "I just wish that I could have done more," Brown said Sunday. [San Francisco Chronicle]
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6. IRON MAN 3 HAULS IN $175 MILLION
Iron Man 3 took in $175 million over the weekend — the second biggest domestic debut ever. The Marvel blockbuster was second only to another of the comic book powerhouse's titles, The Avengers, which hauled in $207.4 million in its opening weekend. Internationally, Iron Man 3 has made $504.8 million. It picked up another $40 million internationally in IMAX showings, also a record. [IGN]
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7. T-REX SKELETON HEADS HOME TO MONGOLIA
Homeland Security officials are scheduled Monday to return an unusually complete dinosaur skeleton to Mongolia in a ceremony near the United Nations. The 8-foot-high, 24-foot-long Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton was seized last year from confessed looter Eric Prokopi of Gainesville, Fla. He's awaiting sentencing for smuggling in the bones, reassembling them, and selling the skeleton at auction for a little more than $1 million (although the sale was later canceled). [New York Times]
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8. ARMSTRONG'S APOLLO 11 EKG UP FOR SALE
A New Hampshire auction house is offering up an odd piece of moon memorabilia — an EKG measuring Neil Armstrong's heartbeat the moment he became the first person to step on the moon. There's nothing strange about the heartbeat recording, which is what makes it extraordinary enough to fetch a projected $10,000 or more. "It was really slow on the way down, while [Buzz] Aldrin's was racing," says Gerald Schaber, who monitored Armstrong's vital signs. "But that was typical of Neil." [PC Magazine]
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9. GIFFORDS RECEIVES PROFILE IN COURAGE AWARD
Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords received the 2013 Profile in Courage award at the John F. Kennedy Library on Sunday for her work to reduce gun violence. Giffords has become an advocate of gun control, including expanded federal background checks for gun buyers, since she was severely wounded in a deadly 2011 shooting in Tucson, Ariz. "Gabby Giffords has turned a personal nightmare into a movement for political change," said JFK's daughter, Caroline Kennedy, who presented the award. [Associated Press]
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10. LEBRON JAMES NAMED NBA MVP... AGAIN
Miami Heat forward LeBron James was named the NBA's most valuable player on Sunday. James, winning the award for a fourth time, came one vote shy of being the first basketball superstar to win unanimously — 120 of the 121 sportswriters voting picked him. The other vote went to Carmelo Anthony of the Heat's bitter rival, the New York Knicks. "It was probably a writer out of New York that didn't give me that vote," James said. [USA Today]
