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[ announcer ] healthy green tea, tasty black tea, zero calories. i love this stuff! snapple. the best diet stuff on earth. good morning from randi kaye at cnn world headquarters. >> randi amazing images coming out of egypt. we heard about a new vice president. now the latest reports just moments ago, a new prime minister. darkness is falling. demonstrators are still in the streets demanding historic change. they seem to be coming in waves, ignoring the government-ordered curfew. the military and police, we should make clear, are also out in full force. we've been hearing gunfire near a key government building. >> earlier in the day, state-run tv reported egypt's government officially resigned. president mubarak said he's putting together a new cabinet. but protesters want him to go. at least 38 people are reported dead now including ten security forces. >> we're also seeing demonstrations in support of egypt's protesters in cities around the globe. people are seeing this and being moved by what they see from beirut to london, montreal and washington. >> events are changing fast and cnn has it all covered for. you we have correspondents on the ground in cairo and alexandria, egypt. we're also monitoring places like jerusalem and washington. we have the whole region covered with our correspondents and our cameras. stay with us all day as we watch and analyze all of this as it happens. >> now, let's get to the capital cairo and cnn's frederik pleitgen. >> we're being told that a new vice president has been appointed and also a new prime minister. what can you tell us about omar suleiman, this new vice president that we're expecting will be sworn in here shortly. >> well, we know very little about this man. we do know that he's a very trusted person by hosni mubarak. so certainly this is something that's not going to make very many people here on the ground very happy. certainly not someone that lookses like fundamental change. this is someone who served the president very well. he's from the intelligence community here in egypt. so certainly someone who is very much trusted and very much part of the old guard here in egypt. let me tell you what's going on on the streets as we still have a lot of protesters here. as you said, they've been ignoring the curfew, so they're still out here in force. right now in front of our building it's not as many as it was during the daylight hours. night is sort of falling here. we are, however, hearing of widespread looting, especially on the outskirts of egypt. we're getting a lot of calls here to our bureau by people who are very, very worried telling us that there are gangs out on the streets that are looting property. people banding together to try to stop those gangs. but all in all, people here are very afraid for the property and very afraid for their safety because one of the things that we've been talking about that's basically happened is that the police have vanished off the streets of cairo, by and large. right now there doesn't seem to be much in the way of public order except, of course, for places at our office building where you have the military out in force. but of course they can't be everywhere. therefore right now it is still a very volatile and very much a situation that's in flux, if you will. >> and fred, i'm not sure how far you are from the interior ministry, but we were speaking with ian lee there earlier. he was reporting gunfire to us, several people shot. and quite a scene there as protesters, he said, were storming the interior ministry and getting into quite a scuffle with police as police were opening fire on them. do you have any updates on that situation? >> that's also one of those situations. very, very difficult to get any verifiable information on that situation. what we're hearing from people there who are close to that area is that there is a large protest at the interior ministry. that there's apparently violence at the interior ministry. it appears as though there's police personnel inside that building and shielding the building trying to get people to try to stop people from getting in that building. hearing from people that there are snipers on the roof of that building who are shooting at people, this is stuff that we haven't been able to if va independently. it certainly is from people who we trust very much who are giving us this information. so certainly the interior ministry seems to be one of those flashpoints. we can tell you that the interior minister of this country was one of the most despised people here in the country simply because the police force here in egypt is so very hated by so many people because so many people had witnessed and have been subject to police brutality that this ministry is certainly one of the flashpoints here in the city and indeed here in this country. >> fredric, obviously, this is far from over, but already there has been an enormous human cost. we've seen reports of hundreds of people in hospital, dozens dead. what can you tell us about those who have been hurt, those who have been killed and those taken under arrest? >> we do know that there's some sort of makeshift center being set up in some places to treat people who have been injured and people are trying to get treatment. other people are telling us that after they were arrested by police, that they were beaten by police officers, somethi people held for two days or so. there has been a high toll not just of course in deaths but also in people who are injured and wounded in the fighting in recent days. there were a lot of people who seem to be wounded. some of them lightly, some more heavily in part by tear gas and in part because they were hit by tear gas canisters, in part because they got hit in the head. so certainly this is something where a lot of people have gotten hurt so far. so you're absolutely right. this has already taken a very, very large hole not just here in cairo but also in other places across the country. >> frederik pleitgen reporting to us live. amid shafiq has been serving as civil aviation minister. after the prime minister appointed a new vice president choosing what sounds like a technocrat to form the next administration. civil aviation is not a post where you made a lot of enemies. >> he's now appointed a prime minister and a vice president. should we read into this? >> it sounds like he's not going away any time soon. hard to tell. all of this is mystifying people around the world. i'm no visionary, but the extraordinary thing is is hosni mubarak had a chance to leave easily and quickly. he's clearly not doing that. he seems to be doing what he told his people he would, assembling a government and in that speech he said that he was responsible for the stability of his country. what we now know is that the vice president, the first vice president in 30 years of the mubarak regime is a figure who has been responsible for suppress i suppressing dissent. >> and part of the mubarak inner circle. >> absolutely. somewhere in america, there's a doctor who can peer into the future. there's a nurse who can access in an instant every patient's past. and because the whole hospital's working together, there's a family who can breathe easy, right now. somewhere in america, we've already answered some of the nation's toughest healthcare questions. and the over 60,000 people of siemens are ready to do it again. siemens. answers. than any of its german competitors. but it isn't real performance unless it's wielded with precision. the new 2011 lexus is 350. see your lexus dealer. the ne[instrumental music] welcome back. more rage in the streets of egypt. anti-government protesters are there. you're looking at some video of some of the protesters who are still out in the streets in full force today. anti-government demonstrations are in their fifth day. this hour, protesters are defying a curfew. state-run nile tv reports at least 38 deaths in those protests. a doctor in cairo is reporting that at least five people have died from gunshot wounds near the egyptian interior ministry. we've spoken with several eyewitnesses in that area, one who had seen two people actually shot by police there. one grazed in the head and very graphic description of a man spitting out blood. earlier state tv reported president hosni mubarak's cabinet resigned. that hours after the egyptian leader promised reforms in an address to the nation. reports from saudi arabia say that king abdullah called mr. mubarak to say he stands with the embattled egyptian president. we should also mention that hosni mubarak has also appointed a vice president, omar suleiman, who has been described to us as a bit of a thug but well respected in that region. a fixer, if you will. one of the world's most powerful spy chiefs. and he's also appointed a new prime minister. two new cabinet members. the prime minister who once served as civil aviation minister according to egyptian state tv and nile tv. >> intriguing appointments. he's appointed his spy chief to help him and he's taken someone from the ranks of the air force because ahmed shafiq spent decades as air force man. he's not reaching out to new people, as best we can tell. jonathan alt is a man who has followed all this. >> he's oz ne mubarak's comfort zone. the way he got close to him was in the assassination attempt in addis ababa, he protected the president. he's been close to the president since 1995. he's the guy who makes everything that the president needs to have work work. so he's very important with security relationship with the united states he's very important in egypt's relations with hamas and israel. he runs a lot of the domestic and intelligence and security services. he's the person hosni mubarak is most comfortable with. he has no question -- hosni mubarak has no question omar suleiman is not going to try to push him out. he's going to defend hosni mubarak. >> he already has. because we can describe him as a trusted confident, as a problem solver, a fixer. this is not a man with a gentle past. this is a man who put down the islamists who are threatening this regime. and that was a fairly bloody bit of work. >> not only that but he's also a person, he doesn't like the spotlight. he doesn't want to be in the press. it's hard to find a picture of omar suleiman. i met him once in a sort of strange situation. but he is not somebody who wants to be the president of egypt. he's somebody who wants to protect the president of egypt. he wants to protect the military government in egypt. and that's the kind of person hosni mubarak wants at his side in this time of tremendous uncertainty. >> as we watch the uncertainty continue and the protests continue on the streets, jonathan, what will these new appointments mean to ordinary egyptians who are there fighting for their rights, fighting for jobs, fighting for economic security? >> yeah, i think what this suggests is the president is trying to signal resolve. that he's not going to make what he sees as the mistake that ben ali made in tunisia and a day after he tried to give conciliatory peach is on a plane out of the country. i do think that this has to be understood as the beginning of the final act of hosni mubarak's presidency. there are presidential elections slated for next fall. i cannot imagine that hosni mubarak will run in those elections. what we're looking at is some transition. and the issue here is really is egypt's political future going to be a continuation of the military establishment essentially running the country in a civilian guise or is that all in doubt and then nobody has any idea what would be there? and as i read the quotations in all the newspaper articles that i read in the last several days, i don't really sense that egyptians are clamoring for democracy in elections. i sense what they're clamoring for is better results. the bet that hosni mubarak is making that omar suleiman are going to be making is that if the military closes ranks and supports the president and talks about working that transition, that they can have a guided transition away from hosni mubarak instead of a chaotic one. >> a lot of people still wondering how all of this is going to affect the global markets. what's your take on that? >> well, it's very early to tell partly because i think the most important decisions are going to be the decisions made over the next 9 to 12 months over what is the future government of egypt going to look like, who is going to be in and who is going to be out and how will others relate to the region? will it be as strong an ally as it has been to the unite for some years. i sense jitteriness now and if hosni mubarak goes down in flames -- and i gather that's not especially likely, but it's possible, that would create a huge sense of uncertainty throughout the middle east. it would create uncertainty in israel. then israel would be much more likely to take unpredictable unilateral aks which would create greater instability in the middle east. >> jonathan alterman for us. thank you so much for your insight. >> thank you, randi. >> roz ne mubarak say he's staying, now he has help. two new figures emerge. whatcha doing? snapple stuff. hey! what's that stuff? give me that stuff. have you seen this stuff? - diet stuff? that stuff's the best. - didn't we find better stuff? - same stuff. just diet. - huh. there's stuff going on. why don't they tell me this stuff? jim, what's the deal with this stuff? all right, look, everyone. diet snapple is made with the same stuff-- healthy green tea, tasty black tea. - this is just zero calorie stuff! - bingo. [ announcer ] healthy green tea, tasty black tea, zero calories. i love this stuff! snapple. the best diet stuff on earth. well, tens of thousands of egyptians want hosni mubarak to leave the presidency, but at least two men have signed on to help him stay. >> they want to be a part of it. >> we have word that ahmed shafiq has been appointed the new prime minister of egypt and omar suleiman appointed vice president for the first time in three decades of mubarak's rule. >> two men with in history there as well. >> interesti history and contacts around the world. which brings us to elisa babor tp. >> that's right, john. really well known to the u.s. really one of the main interlocutors to the u.s. state department and the white house. we just spot to state department spokesman crowley that's someone we know well and have worked closely with. our focus is putting concrete reactions between mubarak. egypt needs a meaningful process that leads to genuine reform. i spoke to another official just a short time ago that said, we like him very much, but it's not about personalities. it's about policies. the u.s. really wants to see over the next couple of days, they're not expecting intan tan yus results, but they want to see mubarak reach out and make a meaningful set of reforms. he can say to his people that he hears them on the streets. >> can i ask you a basic undiplomatic question? does the obama administration want to see hosni mubarak hang on? do they want to see him remain as president of egypt? >> i keep hearing this phrase, managed change. i think jon alterman had it about right. they want to see a political process where people are brought in, a national dialogue, if you will, going beyond the elites, talking about job creation, talking about how to alleviate some of the social and economic frustrations in the country. i think they'd like to see him go, but at some point, because obviously they've been working closely with him, but he's frustrated them on a lot of issues including human rights, but they don't know who is going to come next. but they want to see a process where people lift a state of emergency, there are elections in september. if you can see a process where a genuine opposition with a face, with a name specific candidates maybe could run in the september election, i think they'd like to see mubarak gradually phase out. but right now they don't know who comes next, that's a scary proposition for the united states. so i keep hearing that phrase, managed change. not right now, i don't think they want to see him go, but ultimately they would like to see a more democratic face in egypt. >> elise labatt in washington. thank you very much. our next guest is the author of "the last pharaoh" mubarak and the uncertain future of egypt in the obama age. he also ran against president mubarak in the 2005 ehekz. >> he joins us live from chicago. you not only predicted a revolt against mubarak but you said you believe his regime will fall. is this what's going to do it? are we watching this happen now? >> well, i was not surprised to see that all happen and unfold. i was not surprised to see omar suleiman to be appointed as the vice president because i talked about that in my book and i predicted that, i predicted several scenarios that could unfold. this is all too similar. and the thing that is not about omar suleiman as a fixer, as a consigliere, but about what the egyptian people want. the people on the street, they simply want mr. mubarak out, his regime, his party, people, his family, all of these symbols. >> is that what they're going to get? all hope aside, let's look at what's going to unfold in the next several days and tell us what you expect. >> i do not think that these demonstrations will go away very soon. because they have very specific demands. and these are very young people, about 60% of the egyptian population are educated, a lot unemployed. they cannot get married, there's a housing crisis. so there's a sense of frustration and hopelessness. they have specific demands. they said it loud and clear they want president mubarak out. i would not be surprised either to see that all of that will not happen and will not succeed to appease the egyptian people and mr. mubarak would be stepping down because already some members of his family headed for london since the last few days. even some of the heads of the regime. they' they know that their days are numbered. we're seeing the same thing that happened in tunisia. we're failing again, once again, to read the writing on the wall. we failed to learn the lessons of iran 30 years ago or of marcos in the philippines and indonesia. military dictators will inevitably fall. we have to talk to the people. we haven't been talking to the egyptian people. they need to see strong messages from us. >> we're doing our best to talk to them now. and they're certainly being heard. aladdin elaasar. thank you very much. he talked about a report that we've been seeing that some of the figures close to mubarak closely, some members of his family, all kinds of rumors have started turning up in other places. >> other countries. >> we do not know that that's the case. you may be seeing these rumors on the internet. people being spotted in airports and other countries. we're trying very hard because those would be signals if they were accurate. >> we don't know where hosni mubarak is, not only his family but where he is. we have cameras all over the region. ♪ [ male announcer ] from jet engines that have fewer emissions, to new ways to charge electric cars, to renewable sources of clean energy, ecomagination from ge is advanced technology that's good for both the economy and the environment. ♪ it's technology that makes the world work. 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[ disco playing ] and this is to remind you that you could save hundreds! yeah, that'll certainly stick with me. we'll take it. go, big money! i mean, go. it's your break, honey. same coverage, more savings. now, that's progressive. call or click today. basic. preferred. at meineke i have options on oil changes. and now i get free roadside assistance with preferred or supreme. my money. my choice. my meineke. welcome back. let's update you now on the latest out of egypt. a country very much in crisis as protests continue there for a fifth consecutive day. there is also a major government change to tell you about. egyptian state television reporting that omar suleiman, the head of egypt's intelligence services has been appointed vice president and minister from the recently dismissed cabinet, ahmad shafiq appointed as prime minister. that word coming as well from state tv. >> we have correspondents all over the region. nic robertson is in alexandria egypt for us. nic, we heard so many reports of violence this morning and shooting as well. what is the situation in alexandria? >> it's still a fluid situation. it's been a relatively peaceful situation through the day. there are army on the streets. thousands of people have been protesting. behind me you're looking along the komish, the road that runs alongside the mediterranean. just a few minutes ago, a few armored personnel carriers raced along there heading away somewhere else. we couldn't tell where. they've been posted around the city keeping security on some of the government institution buildings here in the city. 15 minutes ago we heard gunshots being fired in this direction over here. we haven't heard any more gunshots since then. today, however, the tone has been a very solid tone of get rid of president mubarak. the tone has also been a relatively peaceful one. but the crowds are still out. a half hour ago i looked over the balcony here. there was shouting going on. i could see the crowds dragging away a man from the street. they had their arm around his neck in a neck lock. it wasn't clear where this mob was taking him away to. but clearly whatever he'd been doing, they were certainly very angry with. randi? >> from what you've seen in terms of the anger on the street as we get word of a new vice president and prime minister, how do you think that will be received by protesters on the street? will that be enough? >> among the protesters we've been talking to, the vast majority are going to reject these picks because they see them as part of the system, as part of the apparatus of president mubarak's regime. for that reason, they will probably say they don't want them, they reject this idea. they want a fresh start. however, there are quieter voices on the sides of the margins of the demonstrations here. they've been saying, look, president mubarak said out with the old government, i'll bring in a new one. people are saying, look, we're very worriyed about what's going to happen. we don't want a return to violence here. we do worry where all these street protests will lead us to. perhaps it's better to let this new government be formed and see how that is. but the people saying that, i do have to say, seem to be in the minority. the majority are looking for a clean sweep of the leadership -- on the streets here if you will. these politicians have been part of president mubarak's regime. who will explain to these angry people that these new leaders who are part of the old system are going to be better for them? and it's not clear at this moment how that's going to happen. we can expect to hear challenges even to these early picks. >> nic robertson for us in alexandria. one of the many correspondents that we have in that area covering this crisis for us as it unfolds. we'd like to take you to cairo now where our ifbvan watson is standing by. can you tell us what you have been able to gather at the events have unfolded at the interior ministry where several people have been shot. and what you witnessed. >> what we saw was on the doorstep of a mosque a few blocks from the interior ministry. there was a makeshift clinic set up. we were watching young men come in in shock and their faces started to turn green from loss of blood after just having been shot. some of the bystanders said that these were plastic or rubber bullets. and they're right on the scene there amid the prayer mats outside the mosque. doctors in dirty, bloody lab coats were swabbing these puncture wounds i saw. some in one man's stomach, another young man had been shot in the hand and was getting bandaged there. one of the doctors there, he said that since about 3:00 in the afternoon and at 6:30 local time here, over the course of about three hours, they had treated some 60 people with these kinds of presumably plastic rubber bullet wounds. in addition to that, randi, we saw another man wrapped in an egyptian flag with his feet bound, apparently the body of a man being carried through the streets by a chanting crowd. and a weeping man there telling us that he had been, in fact, shot and killed by the interior ministry. got a lot of warnings from bystanders saying do not go too close up, there are snipers on the roofs there. >> it's jonathan mann, just to be clear about this. this challenge, this fight for the interior ministry, is it still ongoing? >> hard for us to tell. we did hear what sounded like gunshots in the last ten minutes. and i have heard at least one other burst of gunshots over the course of the last three to four hours there. i have to point out, i wasn't able to get close to that building but one man after hearing some of these claims coming from -- i saw at least four young men with these kinds of injuries, john. another man said, listen, the people in the interior ministry are afraid of the crowd and they're just trying to defend themselves from when the mob gets too close to their building. so two different versions of what may be happening there. but there's no question that amid the scenes of elation, john, that we've seen, truly a festive atmosphere in the square just a few blocks from the interior ministry, we've also had very bloody clashes going on and the number of injuries as well as at least one death. >> yet despite the blood, ivan, despite the shooting, despite the tear gas, these protesters don't seem to be giving up. in fact, they seem to be growing stronger. is that how it appears to you? >> yeah. it's really remarkable. and we are hearing about clashes in one place, area, randi, but i have to say the people in the streets who appear to be in charge. they're climbing on to the egyptian military's tanks. they're riding around on them cheering, embracing the soldiers, praying next to the soldiers' tanks. and they're cheering. a curious combination, randi, of elation. elation at being free and being able to say things that people haven't been able to say in a long time. and also real hatred for the egyptian regime. when i ask people are they angry you kind of get a mix of yes, i'm furious at this government, i want hosni mubarak to go, but i'm so proud to be an egyptian because i get to stand up and be proud to speak my own mind. >> ivan watson for us in cairo. so great to have you there and really bring us the story as it's unfolding along with so many of our other correspondents around the region. we're going to have to take one very quick break. and we'll be right back. f heroe. heroes who travel thousands of miles to face the unknown... and those who stay behind to do the same. for every warrior who charges into the fight... is another who fights to keep moving forward until their return. military lives are different. at usaa we've been there. we understand. that's why our commitment to serve military, veterans and their families is without equal. usaa. for insurance, banking, investments, retirement and advice... we know what it means to serve. let us serve you. ♪ who's born to care this life was protected... ♪ seems you've always been right there ♪ this life was saved... ♪ soothing sadness ♪ healing pain and this life was made easier... ♪ making smiles appear again because of this life. nursing. at johnson & johnson, we salute all those who choose the life... that makes a difference. ♪ you're a nurse ♪ you make a difference welcome back to our continuing coverage of the upheaval in egypt. a short time ago we had one of our reporters say that he smoke with a muslim cleric saying that protesters weren't following his leadership, they were following the leadership of facebook. an extraordinary thing, social media, facebook included, twitter have been a galvanizing force in the protests that we've seen in egypt. >> month happened jamjoom is following that story for us. is social media back up, is the internet back up in egypt? >> the internet is not back up, but mobile phone service has been up intermittently throughout the day. a lot of users have been able to use mobile phone networks to get their messages out on socialed me wra. we've seen new ireports. close to jiladi square in cairo. this is taken from a balcony. all these protesters, many looking to be from all ages, different protesters out there in the streets today. if i can take you up to this screen as well, we're getting tweets. yesterday we were getting very few tweets. today quite a bit more. i know this is far-fetched but if any doctors can could help in downtown, a small mosque next to koshri-el tahrir where injured are kept. that's ha this person on twitter is saying. live rounds litter the ground leading up to the interior ministry. everything on ground floor looted and trashed. the biggest crowd to date in tahrir now huge. bigger than the jan 25th sit number in that started it all. whole families children. don't believe the lie. no one in the streets of egypt was chanting to get omar suleimans a president. hes with just appointed vice president not president. but indicative of the mood there. the egyptian people are protecting public and private properties and organizing traffic and protecting each other. very interesting to see. twitter users out of cairo tweeting once more. interesting to see if the internet is back up and running in tex few hours or days to see if the traffic increases and what people will be saying. socialed ed mmedia has been an integral part of getting people out into the streets to demonstrate what's going on in egypt right now. >> we're seeing a lot of this and we're grateful for everything we're learning off of socialed me ra. one question we have to ask, you're reading in it english. mohammed, you're a flint arabic speaker obviously. how different are the messages being sent, shared for arabic speakers? >> what we've seen so far, a lot has been similar in sentiment. angry tweets with regards to the vice president being appointed. a lot of reaction on social media is that this isn't going to change anything. but as far as the pleas for help, as far as the atmosphere of jubilation, as far as people being happy to be able to tweet and use social media as a rallying cry, you're seeing the same sentiment being done in arabic and english. but interesting that you're seeing so many tweets in english out of cairo right now. >> mohammed jamjoom, thank you so much. >> that tweet he was saying he got about people asking for doctors to help at this mosque in cairo. that's actually from cnn's mary rogers who is there at the scene who reported that five people died from gunshot wounds. also at that treage center also asking for doctors. they're getting it, we're getting it. we're all over it. >> we're following those stories taking them very seriously. the red cross were getting those tweets. people do take those kinds of messages very seriously. social media save lives. >> clearly they needed the help and we're getting the message out there. 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[ male announcer ] a world you can't predict... demands a car you can trust. the e-class. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services. and now, join us on facebook and take part in the world's first twitter-fueled race. welcome back. egypt has a new vice president. egypt has a new prime minister. but egypt still has the same man in charge, hosni mubarak. and he's doing his best to hold on while thousands of demonstrators gather in the streets. at least two cities that we're monitoring closely demanding he resign. our extensive coverage is continuing. >> people in egypt are really trying to digest all of these changes as it happens. we want the take you to cairo where an egyptian american communications consultant maha. we won't use her last name for safety there. if you can, can you tell us a little bit about the mood there and what you're feeling among the people in cairo? >> well, we're feeling a level of uncertain te right now. we're monitoring the situation on television to see what's taking place. we're at home. a lot of my friends are at home. we've been calling each other to check on each other to make sure everyone's okay. we don't have internet access. so we're not able to fully understand what's world around us but we do have televisions, we're able to communicate with friends and family. the situation is that we see from the streets is there needs to be kind of a restoration of order. i think the main concern now is that things get under control, that we feel safe, that we feel the streets are under control. there are protesters on the streets, it rooks peaceful, but we hear sporadic stories of burglaries and looting and stuff like that. so that makes us uneasy and nervous. but we're all staying home, we're all just checking on each other, and we're monitoring the situation, hoping for calm. >> maha, this is jonathan mann. we're looking at these extraordinary crowds that have gathered across the thoroughfares and major scares of cairo, but i'm curious about the rest of the city and how ordinary people are getting by. are stores open? can you buy milk? can your kids go out to play? are people talking about what they're going to do when the work week starts? are they going to go to work as many do on sunday or monday? >> they've announced the banks are closed tomorrow, the central bank is closed tomorrow and the stock market is closed tomorrow. my staff, and i, we're obviously not going to work tomorrow. one of my friends tried to get groceries this morning, she said there was a huge line at one of the main supermarkets and she couldn't get what she needed. we're all staying home. i think on thursday those of us that planned ahead kind of braced ourselves. and i've never been in a hurricane, but on friday, yesterday, i kind of felt this is what it's like where you brace yourself for a storm, and you just sit and wait. so you can't really leave your house, you shouldn't leave your house, we need to respect that there's a curfew and it's there for our safety. so we're basically sitting tight and kind of talking to each other and watching what you're all watching on tv. >> i don't want to put words into your mouth but apart from the scenes you're seeing, a lot of cairo would be a ghost town today. >> yeah, i guess some people tried to move around today and they just said it's not safe to move around. the main squares and the main areas downtown, they are seeing a lot of foot traffic and a lot of people are venturing out, i think i know people aren't able to get to their families in other parts of the towns, so everyone is just staying home. >> all right, maha, an egyptian-american in cairo with interesting perspective. thank you. of course the unrest we've been watching in egypt isn't isolated. we've seen turmoil in several neighbors countries, tunisia, most notably, but yemen as well. we've been following that development but if you're just joining us now, let me bring you up to date with what's going on in egypt itself. the region is watching nervously because there's a new prime minister, there's a new vice president, hosni mubarak is trying very hard to stay in power. well, as we've been mentioning, none of this is isolated. we've seen problems in other parts of the region, we're getting some confusing signals there, i want to make sure we all know where we're going, but the bottom line is this, the most powerful arab nation, a pillar of the region is now in turmoil, the president is doing his best to hold on, but the rest of the region also is being affected. egypt's not isolate, we've seen the turmoil and we're watching it unfold. >> and over the past few weeks we've seen turmoil in several neighboring countries, as we mentioned, but does that mean these protests throughout the region are the same? we've seen so many different protesters, so we put that question to josh levs earlier this morning. >> here's the thing. big picture, they kind of are about the same things. but there are specific situations in each country that have gotten a lot of people upset of it's important to understand these differences, especially as we're seeing all these videos come in. let's get back to egypt for a second. i've been speaking with all these experts on the scene, and on all these countries in recent days. and the way one expert put it to me, he said they all want the same thing. this is about inequalities, it's about a lack of tumopportunitie it's about the rich getting richer, what the demonstrators feel are aspects of a totalitarian regime in each country. and something important to understand, we were just talking about the makeup of these protests. we do have a lot of people who are middle class, a lot of educated people, a lot of young, educated people. and there's a term that might be new to you all this morning, but it's not new to those who follow revolutions through history. it's called the blocked elite, randi. this is a group of people who are educated and believe that they should be elite because they know how to take on major jobs, they feel they should have major jobs inside their countries, and they feel that what's been happening is stopping them. and they believe it's because of the government. and decisions made from the government are preventing them from having more advanced jobs inside of their countries. >> the common theme is really they think they deserve more. >> they believe they deserve more, they believe they can play a major role, they believe economically they should be at a higher level. we can quickly show you, we've had videos from what's been going on in tunisia as well, then smaller protests inside algeria and yemen. there are specifics in each country to keep in mind and it's important to mention. for example, in algeria and yemen, you've had civil wars in the past. whereas tunisia you have a more of a homogenious population. but we're looking at a lot of young people pushing hard for what they believe is their place in society. >> and as the protests continue in the region and throughout egypt, we do want to just remind you we're now seeing already the cabinet has officially resigned, we have a new vice president in egypt, apparently going to be sworn in any time now, a new prime minister as well, in terms of numbers. we're being told at least 38 are dead. the shootings continue at the interior ministry, the turmoil continues. we have our correspondents spread throughout the region, and we will continue to stay on top of this. >> extraordinary upheaval in a country long considered one of the most stable in the region. a pillar of western policy, a close ally of the united states. all of that very much in question. i'm jonathan mann. >> and i'm randi kaye. thanks for being with us throughout this very busy morning. morning. the news continues after this. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com to the morning bowl of cereal. and to lactaid® milk. easy to digest and with all the calcium and vitamin d of regular milk. 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