Cheat Sheet - 10 Things to Watch at the U.S. Open

Today: Sarin, Nitrogen Mustard, Cyanide & More: All About Chemical Weapons , Yosemite Fire Burns 134,000 Acres , Saudi Prince Plots to Topple Assad August 26, 2013 LOVE 1. U.S. Open Kicks Off! It's not often that the tennis tour sweeps into New York with so many buzzy and seemingly frantic storylines. But with the U.S. Open beginning Monday in Queens, the biggest stars in the sport are providing for a dramatic end to the Grand Slam season worthy of a Broadway plotline. From Federer's sinking chances to Serena's shrieking new rival, The Daily Beast's Nicholas McCarvel on the biggest storylines that will unfold at this year's tournament. Read it at The Daily Beast WMD 2. All About Chemical Weapons Syria's Bashar al-Assad is alleged to have used sarin gas against his own people. From the Germans' use of chlorine gas in World War I to Saddam's "weapons of mass destruction," The Daily Beast's Kent Sepkowitz breaks down the various types of chemical weapons—and their effects. Read it at The Daily Beast 'THE BLACK' 3. Yosemite Fire Burns 134,000 Acres The massive Yosemite Fire burned through 134,000 acres in nine days as it pushed closer to Yosemite National Park on Monday. The blaze is the 15th largest in California history, and is still only 7 percent contained. Firefighters have had difficulty reaching some parts of the fire, especially as it burned through parts of previously untouched wilderness and through hot and dry conditions. "The fire came boiling out, just cooking," said Lee Bentley, a spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service. "It was so hot it created its own weather. It was like dropping a boulder in a pond; fire spread out in every direction." Parts of the blaze burned through so much that firefighters called the devastation "the black," as entire ravines and ridges became dusty and gray. Read it at Los Angeles Times LETS DO THIS 4. Saudi Prince Plots to Topple Assad While the White House weighs its options for an intervention in Syria, a veteran power player in Saudi Arabia is pushing a plan to topple the embattled country's president, Bashar al-Assad. Prince Bandar bin Sultan al-Saud is trying to undermine Assad's regime by gaining the support of other nations. The Saudi leader has reportedly been traveling from the front lines of Syria to intelligence agencies worldwide with a simple message: my kingdom has the money needed to defeat Assad—and we're ready to use it. It's not new territory for the longtime Saudi ambassador, who was once considered to be "one of the most influential deal makers in Washington." Read it at The Wall Street Journal Tense 5. Israeli Raid Could Disrupt Peace Talks This doesn't bode well for peace talks. Three Palestinians were shot and killed by Israeli forces during a clash in a refugee camp near Jerusalem, where Israeli security forces went to rearrest a recently released suspected militant. Israel says its forces fired in self-defense as Palestinians began throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails. Initial reports said the Palestinians were withdrawing from the newly restarted peace talks, but a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority said only that the incident would have "negative repercussions" for the peace process. Read it at Los Angeles Times CONFLICT Snipers Fire at U.N. Inspectors in Syria Investigating alleged poison gas attack. LET'S MAKE A DEAL Ex-Bachmann Aide Sentenced to Community Service Was charged with misdemeanor theft. BLUE DREAMS Last Elmore Leonard Novel Likely His son, Peter Leonard, hopes to complete. MALIGNED CYRUS Will Smith Wasn't Dissing Miley Family was reacting to Lady Gaga in viral pic. VMAS Timberlake Wins Video of the Year And 'N Sync reunites. CNBC Donald Trump Is Hammering New York Attorney General Over Lawsuit Us Weekly Lady Gaga's Craziest VMA Looks Minitime 6 State Fairs for Fearless Foodies GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET Culture Beast Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. *NSYNC's Back The moment we were all waiting for has arrived. Four familiar faces appeared behind Justin Timberlake at Sunday's VMAs to perform hits like "Girlfriend" and "Bye Bye Bye" and millennials everywhere jumped for joy. More Videos 'Breaking Bad's Fascinating and Disappointing Reveal by Andrew Romano Friends Say Lamar Odom Isn't Missing by Allison Samuels Economic Crisis Making Affairs Too Expensive by Barbie Latza Nadeau

ABOUT US | CONTACT US | SUBSCRIBE Copyright 2013 The Newsweek/Daily Beast Company LLC 555 W. 18th Street , New York NY 10011 Privacy Policy

If you are on a mobile device or cannot view the images in this message, click here to view this email in your Web browser. To ensure delivery of these emails, please add thedailybeast@e2.thedailybeast.com to your address book. If you have changed your mind and no longer wish to receive these emails, or think you have received this message in error, you can safely unsubscribe here.