NPR 2011-02-04

Lawlessness is spreading in central Cairo where protesters for and against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have been engaged in running street battles, allowing businesses to be looted and buildings torched, all this with apparently 1 little intervention 2 from soldiers. Pro-Mubarak mobs are turning on foreign journalists. NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro says the attacks stretch beyond Tahrir Square.

The NPR group which I was with, we were in our residential 3 neighborhood, no one near the epicenter of fighting, and we were just trying to talk to people about daily life, and suddenly we were surrounded, we were asked for our identifications, we were accused of being spies and infiltrators. And then it got violent, and what had turned into a mob started beating a colleague of mine. We tried to flee to the car, we were chased, and the crowd was extremely angry, and eventually, the army was called and they escorted us to safety. Our experience was pretty typical today of what many journalists have been seeing across the city.

NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro on the dramatic events unfolding in Cairo. More people are joining the movement to oust 4 President Mubarak. And NPR's Eric Westervelt says talks between opposing factions 5 have apparently stalled.

Egypt's Vice 6 President Omar Suleiman says he held a dialog with the country's political parties today to try to end 10 days of protest against President Mubarak's regime. But the talks went nowhere. And the liberal opposition 7 Wafd Party today suspended talks indefinitely after escalating 8 violence here Wednesday and overnight that it said was backed by the Mubarak regime. Also today, another opposition figure, Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, said his group and the hugely influential 9 Muslim Brotherhood 10 will not enter into talks with the government on ending protest until President Mubarak resigns. On Tuesday, Mubarak said he will not step down until after his term ends in September. Vice President Suleiman also Thursday rejected calls by the US and others to accelerate political change in Egypt. He said, 'intervention in our internal affairs is strange, unacceptable, and we will not allow it.' Eric Westervelt, NPR News, Cairo.

In the US, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' husband says he is a big believer in faith ever since his wife survived the shooting massacre 11 in Tucson last month. Astronaut Captain Mark Kelly at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. today.

"Everyday, she gets a little bit better. And the neurosurgeons and the urologists tell me that that's a great sign. The slope of that curve is very important."

Giffords survived a gunshot wound to the head in an apparent assassination 12 attempt. She was among 19 people shot, six people died.

Here is the latest from Wall Street; the Dow was down six points at 12,036. This is NPR News.

The Egyptian uprising that was inspired by a coup 13 in Tunisia weeks earlier fueled similar revolts in various parts of the Arab world. And as a result, government reshuffling. The latest involves Algeria where the state news agency is reporting the government is lifting a state of emergency that has been in effect since 1992, following a civil war between Islamists and security forces. NPR's Frank Langfitt reports that an opposition party in Khartoum is now reporting that Sudanese security forces have arrested 10 reporters in advance of planned protests in that country.

Inspired by their brothers in Tunisia and Egypt, students in northern Sudan have been calling for regime change and a reduction in prices. Security forces have arrested more than 100 people. Human Rights Watch says many of those have been beaten. There is widespread frustration 14 with the Sudanese economy where incomes are low and prices are shockingly high. To make matters worse, Sudan is poised 15 to lose most of its oil reserves when the South secedes 16 in July. But observers do not expect this week's protests to be as effective as those in Egypt or Tunisia. The ruling National Congress Party appears to be in control for now. It has a vast spy network and faces a fragmented opposition. Frank Langfitt, NPR News, Nairobi.

US retailers 17 are reporting stronger-than-expected revenue gains in January despite the snowstorms. Chains such as Costco and Limited Brands and Gap rose more than 1% in early trading. However, stocks are still moving lower. Last check, the Dow was down 3 points at 12,039, NASDAQ down slightly at 2,749, and the S&P 500 also down one at 1,303.