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Uprising in Egypt; Washington's Delicate Diplomacy; Ex-Steeler Gives Back; Fear and Hope in Egypt
Aired January 30, 2011 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.
I'm Don Lemon. Thanks for joining us everyone. It is now early Monday in Egypt. A national uprising is almost a-week-old with no clear resolution in sight and no easy answers for the Obama administration.
Egyptian F-16s streak low over Cairo Sunday afternoon, a visual warning to protesters of the government's curfew, but it had no effect on the ground.
And in the middle of the demonstrations today -- the man in the glasses who some believe will become Egypt's next president, Mohammed El Baradei, diplomat and former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency he made his way through the crowd. His message to them and the world, President Mubarak must leave today.
The Egyptian president shows no indication he will heed that advice. Mr. Mubarak visited a military operation center to get an update on the security situation.
CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr reports Defense Secretary Robert Gates talked by phone with military leaders in both Egypt and Israel about the chaotic situation.
Social order in Egypt collapsed with frightening speed. Reports of widespread looting and lawlessness are rampant. And late last night we received word of a massive prison break near Cairo.
CNN's Frederik Pleitgen went there to investigate what was clearly a dangerous and deadly situation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When we got the prison in Abu Zaaba, a gun battle was still raging inside. But the residents advised us to leave. Inmates had escaped they told us and stolen many weapons from the building's arsenal.
The problem is not just that the prisoners got out, this man told us, the problem is the prisoners got out and took all the weapons with them. The townspeople told us looters later stormed the prison and went on a shooting rampage and that there were still dead bodies on the premises and no police around -- a total breakdown of law enforcement.
We came past half a dozen abandoned police stations looted and torched. Local citizens are banding together arming themselves trying to protect their neighborhoods. In this neighborhood they stopped a stolen car full of armed men, one carrying an automatic weapon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We attacked them like -- were a lot of people. We attacked them. One of the -- one of our friends hit him with a stick on his head, the guy with the machine gun. So he started shooting everywhere and then they fainted --
PLEITGEN: Irrigation engineer Ahemd Abdul Latif (ph) and his son are part of a community defense force. Recently they've gotten help from the army. Latif says his wife and daughter are scared and did not want to be filmed.
AHEMD ABDUL LATIF, EGYPTIAN IRRIGATION ENGINEER: They take everything I have. Anything I have in -- in -- in my house -- is anything, tools -- my car tools. I used my car tools.
PLEITGEN: He blames one man for the upheaval overtaking his country.
LATIF: Thank you Mr. Mubarak. I want to thank him very much for this situation we are in. We want to do, we want him to leave, Mr. Mubarak, leave. Thank you very much.
PLEITGEN: Latif and the others will probably have to spend more nights with their clubs defending their houses. Still they say these days are days of hope even as chaos seems to rein.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Cairo, Egypt.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Fred. Thank you.
Protesters are heard loud and clear around the U.S. in support of Egypt's uprising. You'll see them next.
And speaking of the U.S., what's our government's next move? We'll explore that straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It is time to check "Top Stories" on CNN. It is now Monday morning in Egypt and the national uprising there is entering its seventh day.
Sunday brought tens of thousands of people back out on the street in public squares in defiance of a government curfew. The U.S. is watching the chaotic situation very closely. U.S. Embassy is closed. A live report from Cairo just ahead, here on CNN.
Here in the U.S. and around the world demonstrators marched in support of the protesters in Egypt. Marches were held today in New York and Los Angeles just a day after people hit the streets in solidarity in places like Toronto and Geneva. Different cities but a familiar demand, Mubarak they say must step down.
Police in Tampa, Florida say a mother has admitted to killing her two teenage children. The reason? They talked back to her and were mouthy. Fifty -year-old Julie Schenecker was charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of a 13-year-old son and a 16-year-old daughter.
She was initially booked into jail but was transferred to Tampa General Hospital for treatment of an existing medical condition. Classmates and friends held a candlelight vigil for the murdered teens remembered as excellent students and sweet kids.
The FBI has joined the investigation of a dramatic bank robbery in Maryland. It happened Friday at a Capital One Bank in Tacoma Park and was caught on camera by a TV news helicopter. The suspect ran outside holding a gun to the head of a teller that he had taken hostage. He slipped on the ice when a dye pack exploded as the teller tried to escape six police officers opened fire, killing the robber. The officers have been put on leave while the incident is being investigated.
All right. Get out your handkerchief for this homecoming story. You're watching the Sergeant Andrew Ishmael (ph) of the Missouri National Guard.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. ANDREW ISHMAEL, U.S. ARMY: How are you guys doing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good. How are you?
ISHMAEL: Surprised? Were you surprised?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
ISHMAEL: I came just to watch your game.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Sergeant Ishmael surprised his 10-year-old daughter Kylie (ph) and his 11-year-old son Noah at the basketball game in South St. Louis on Saturday. The Sergeant just got back from Afghanistan and he is traveling again but this time with his family to Disney World.
Isn't that sweet. Linger on that for a little bit.
All right.
As we have been reporting this is a moment of upheaval for the people of Egypt but it's also a time of hope and anxiety for Egyptian- Americans who had to watch all of this unfold from thousands of miles away.
We met Tareq and Hana Hassan (ph) and Mustafa Murcamer (ph) while they were having dinner at Sultans a restaurant right here in Atlanta.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HANA HASSAN, EGYPTIAN-AMERICAN: My concern is the safety of the people there. The people, the young people especially.
MUSTAFA MURCAMER (ph), EGYPTIAN-AMERICAN: The people?
HASSAN: Yes they won't --
MURCAMER: The people won't stop -- and I don't think their bloodshed will be there.
LEMON: So when you finally get through on a land line and you talk to your relatives, what's their -- what's their state of mind like? What do they say about all of this?
TAREQ HASSAN, EGYPTIAN-AMERICAN: People are excited, you know. They feel that --
LEMON: Excited? Not scared.
T. HASSAN: Yes.
H. HASSAN: And scared.
(CROSS TALK)
T. HASSAN: No, no.
H. HASSAN: And scared.
LEMON: She says they're scared. Why do you say that?
H. HASSAN: Yes, I mean, because they don't know what's going to happen.
LEMON: As you watch Mubarak's speech what did you think?
H. HASSAN: It's enough. Let the people rule. Let the people choose who they want.
LEMON: And you said it was -- it was almost as if it's a joke for you.
T. HASSAN: It is a joke. It is a joke because he -- he does not understand -- I mean he -- he obviously doesn't either understand Arabic or he hasn't been watching TV because people are going out and saying "no" to Mubarak.
MURCAMER: And my assessment, he will be leaving that country very soon.
LEMON: Do you think it's over?
MURCAMER: Yes.
LEMON: What does this mean to me? Why am I interested in what's happening in -- in Tunisia, in Cairo? What does it matter to me?
MURCAMER: You have to care for a similar reason. This region has control of oil and that's a big factor.
T. HASSAN: If you have 300 million plus Arabs who are satisfied and living a decent life then things like fundamentalism, you know, such people that people like bin Laden espouse ok, will not take hold.
LEMON: Are you hopeful, Hana?
H. HASSAN: Yes, I hope -- I hope everything will go well.
LEMON: Yes. Are you hopeful?
MURCAMER: I am very hopeful.
T. HASSAN: I'm very hopeful. Extremely hopeful.
H. HASSAN: Yes.
T. HASSAN: Not only for Egypt but for the entire region.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Could the U.S. government shut down the Internet the way they did in Egypt? If so is there a way around it. We will ask our cyber security experts straight ahead.
And the U.S. has given advice to its ally Egypt during this crisis. But what's the next move? CNN's Mark Preston is following developments. He's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody will be here. We have also choice. First choice Mubarak leave and second choice we die here. We have no choice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The uprising in Egypt has taken the spot light in Washington from the White House to Capitol Hill. Our senior political editor Mark Preston is in D.C. for us. So Mark, given the long relationship between the U.S. and President Mubarak, the administration is really in a tight spot, right?
MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: They are in a tight spot, Don. I mean look, Egypt has been a key ally to the United States. Certainly in this region which is, you know, very volatile, to say it lightly.
In fact, we saw the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton out there today giving the administration's response, telling people not only here in the United States but also globally as seen here on CNN International what the administration's response is.
In fact, let's take a listen to what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We want to see this peaceful uprising on the part of the Egyptian people to demand their rights to be responded to in a very clear, unambiguous way by the government.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PRESTON: And there you are. That's the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton talking about the protests that are happening right now over in Egypt. She also said -- it made clear to point out that the U.S. is not taking any side in this situation over in Egypt.
In addition to her we heard from another very influential voice on foreign policy here in the U.S., Senator John McCain. Let's hear what he had to say on "STATE OF THE UNION" this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: There's a lot of very good strong people there. So -- and also I think that President Mubarak, he knows what's going on in his own country. It's up to the United States to be a helpful, assisting but insisting partner. And by the way, we cannot afford a Tiananmen Square in Cairo.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PRESTON: And Don, what we're hearing there now is that there doesn't seem to be any fissure between Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill or with the administration about what the U.S. role is or what the stance is regarding Egypt. What we are hearing though, we're hearing unified talk of a fear in free elections in Egypt -- Don.
LEMON: So Mark, has the White House said anything since the Secretary of State appeared here on CNN earlier today?
PRESTON: Yes, in fact, they have Don. In just the last couple of hours the White House put out a statement noting that the President has spoken to the prime ministers of turkey and Israel as well as speaking to the King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Just today he spoke to the prime minister of the United Kingdom.
One of the main things that the White House was emphasizing is that the President is supporting an orderly transition to a government that is responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people. So some very strong language, hedging language but very strong language from the White House as we continue to follow what's happening in Egypt.
LEMON: Mark Preston, thank you.
You're listening to gun shots at an Egyptian museum and we'll take you live to Cairo for the latest on the uprising. And video that you have to see, a man dunks a basketball but more than the ball goes through the hoop. You're viral videos next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. This hour's viral video theme is crazy animals. First up, what happens when one dog sees another dog on an iPhone.
The dog's name is Maru (ph). He lives in Michigan. Without a doubt this puppy just couldn't quite wrap his doggie brain around how another little dog could be inside a tiny little screen or maybe another little dog could be so tiny.
All right.
Here's one way to exercise your dog without breaking a sweat. Sort of like water skiing on dry land. The dog's name is Pretty and she lives in Austin, Texas with her owner. He bought a special harness so he could ride behind her on his skateboarding. He claims not to be a good skateboarder but the dog loves to romp around the block. Anyway, it's kind of cool to watch. I just hope this guy doesn't fall or get tangled up in the leash because the dog is probably going to drag him a little bit.
Anybody hands you a bucket of monkey chow, brace yourself. We're not sure where this video was shot but it's definitely one of the more unusual and somewhat frightening videos we've seen this week. This guy seems to enjoy all the attention. Being in the middle of that kind of feeding frenzy doesn't strike us as such a good idea though.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There's organization here. This young man up here leading the chants to get President Mubarak out of the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: CNN's Nic Robertson takes us to the heart of an Egyptian protest on the streets of Alexandria. That's next.
But first, the Pittsburgh Steelers are once again headed to the Super Bowl. That makes it perfect timing for our CNN education contributor Steve Perry to check in with one of the all-time Steeler greats, Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris. No football talk here; it's all about Harris's work helping deserving kids get an education.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR: The legend of Franco Harris is growing here in Pittsburgh. Not just because he won four Super Bowls with the Steelers, but for the work he's now doing with an education foundation called the Pittsburgh Promise.
FRANCO HARRIS, FORMER PITTSBURGH STEELERS RUNNING BACK: This is a chance for so many kids to have an opportunity like myself. Even though I didn't plan to go to college, it was a great experience there. I was able to pursue my passion and profession in football. And then afterwards I was able to use my education to go into business.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If this thing weighs 100 pounds, how much does the --
PERRY: So, if a student keeps a 2.5 GPA, attends school 90 percent of the time, you're going to pay at least $5,000 a year for them?
HARRIS: We will give up to $5,000 a year --
PERRY: Per year?
HARRIS: Per year.
PERRY: Any school they desire?
HARRIS: Any school in the state of Pennsylvania.
PERRY: Saleem Ghubril has served as executive director of the Promise since it started in 2007.
How many kids so far in just three years?
SALEEM GHUBRIL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PITTSBURGH PROMISE: In three years, we have sent 2,500 kids to college.
PERRY: Where is this money coming from?
GHUBRIL: In order for us to be able honor that promise, it's going to require raising $250 million. Our largest employer in Pittsburgh is UPMC, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. When we approached them with this idea, they jumped on it right away.
Perry: Vanessa Thompson is now a junior at Chatham University in Pittsburgh.
What does college mean to you now?
VANESSA THOMPSON, SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT: It means that I can get to places that I never thought I could before, so I can dream bigger.
PERRY: Steve Perry, Pittsburgh.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Security forces fired at us. They shot tear gas at us. More than 15 people lost their sight and vision. One was shot at right here.
(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Egyptians are now dealing with two extremes, fear and hope. The collapse of social order has brought waves of looting and lawlessness.
Yet many Egyptians are optimistic that this is the beginning of democracy and freedom. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is in the ancient port of Alexandria where Egyptians march through the streets after curfew with gunfire providing a scary sound track.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON: The demonstrations getting much closer to one of the army posts, so the gunfire that we can hear, rocketing through the air, the demonstrators say that's the army firing to warn them to stay way.
More gun shots. It's long after curfew right now. And if the government was controlling the situation -- gunfire in the air -- these people wouldn't be out on the streets if the government was in control. But right now they are continuing that demand for Hosni Mubarak to step down and the demand we've seen earlier in the day as well.
This one. Foreign governments stop this hypocrisy and stand for Egyptians. What people are saying, they have been telling us this all day they are frustrated with the United States, frustrated with Britain, they said they will demonstrate and continue their demonstrations through the night and this is exactly what we can see happening.
Those shots we saw being fired over the crowd before, from the army, what does that mean?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is quite a clear message to the Egyptian people and that is a clear sign that the military is siding up with the people. And we're actually waiting for the military to take a more serious step at this point to say to the president we're not covering you anymore.
ROBERTSON: And that's more gun shots there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, that is basically either cheering or just basically saying to their commands that we're doing our jobs but what is practically happening on the grounds that are not apprehending any demonstrations, they are siding with the people, and we've seen it across in local territories as well, in inner city more and more aside from highways et cetera.
So it's a clear message that the military is not doing what the regime is asking them to do by preventing demonstrations and enforcing curfew, et cetera.
ROBERTS: It's already a couple of hours past the curfew. It's dark. And the men on the streets here are now guarding the streets. They've got sticks in their hands. They seem quite friendly. And if you look at them all, they've got white arm bands on; when they have the white arm bands on that means that they are sort of official neighborhood watch.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kids coming up.
ROBERTS: What are they saying? Ok. Thank you very much. Thank you.
So, this is calling for Islamic law and not to trust Mohammed al Baradei. Very clear
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it is signed by the Islamic Movement in Alexandria.
ROBERTSON: The Islamic Movement in Alexandria, is that the Muslim Brotherhood or is that more --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, no, this is more probably a cell of the movement.
ROBERTSON: So this is more extreme than Muslim Brotherhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: That was our Nic Robertson in Alexandria, Egypt. You know, protests escalating across Egypt going into the seventh day of national uprising. And CNN has several reporters covering all these on the ground for you. Arwa Damon is standing by right now in Cairo.
Arwa it is after 2:00 a.m. there, what's happening?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, it's fairly quiet right now as we speak. But that was not the scene just a few hours ago. Here we could hear sporadic but intense gunfire lasting for around two hours. Just an indication of how tense the situation remains. A short while ago we could still hear demonstrators chanting their voices echoing throughout the capital. Many people here still saying that no matter what happens they are going to stick to their demand that President Hosni Mubarak step down.
Another issue to point out and this is something that Nic touched on in his report and that's this increasing sense of frustration towards the west, especially towards the United States. They sense that the west does not want to stand fully behind these demonstrators demand that the president step down, that there's this notion that if it's not a Hosni Mubarak style military dictatorship the alternative is going to be some sort of Islamic regime.
And we did speak earlier with Mohammed ElBaradei, Nobel laureate and also possible transitional leader should Hosni Mubarak step down on that very issue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MOHAMMED ELBARADEI, EGYPTIAN OPPOSITION LEADER: ... a friend of the U.S. that your policies right now is a failed policy. It's a policy that is lagging behind. It's a policy that is - is having the effect here in Egypt that you are losing whatever is left of credibility. People need to see that you not only talk the talk but walk the walk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAMON: And that is his message that is directed at the United States. One that we have really been hearing echoed throughout this entire country. Many people feeling frustrated with this notion that they do feel that it was the U.S., after all, that propped up the Mubarak regime, that the U.S. when it suits its purposes touts freedom and democracy but in other cases does tend to back authoritarian regime. It does tend to back these dictatorships. People really emphasizing the point that they want to bring about change. This is not an Islamic movement. They are saying this is a popular movement that really has brought all levels society together, Don.
LEMON: Arwa, I have to ask you, you said it's fairly quiet now. It's after 2:00 a.m. and we've also spoken to some people who are, as a matter of fact, on the ground now. They said people are gathering. Is there any way to indicate or anything that indicates people are going to be back out tomorrow. Are they going to be back out in a larger show of force? Do you know?
DAMON: Well, Don, the sentiment among the demonstrators that we've talked to, is that basically until Hosni Mubarak decides to step down, this is going to be on-doing we are expecting more demonstrations tomorrow. The concern when it comes to Monday is the fact that the government has plans to redeploy the police back into the streets until recently until President Hosni Mubarak cities to step down this will be ongoing.
We are expecting more demonstrations tomorrow. The concern when it comes to Monday is the fact that the government has plans to redeploy the police back into the streets, into certain parts of the capital. Remember many demonstrators feel that it was the police's excessive use of brutality, the tear gas, the rubber bullets that brought about the violent nature of these demonstrations.
They did eventually disappear, that's when we saw the military step in. Great concern about this controversial decision by the government to redeploy the police into the streets. So many people fearing more violence in the days ahead. Another thing too that what we have been seeing increasingly is that as it goes from day into night there are more of these young men, individuals who call themselves concerned citizens setting up their own neighborhood watches, literally streaming into the street. They are arming themselves with wooden batons but also meat cleavers, with swords, with axes. We even saw young children walking around with knives that were literally longer than their forearms.
Residents fully believing that they have to take security into their own hands. Many of them also concerned about what they are saying is going to be increased violence in the days ahead. But again, reiterating this point that they do want President Mubarak to step down. There is this excitement in the air. There's a lot of electricity. But that is also coupled with equal amount of anxiety. Because if and when change does come nobody knows what that is going to look like just yet, Don.
LEMON: All right. Arwa Damon. Thank you, Arwa.
Social media and technology played a role in Egypt's uprising but how can you get around the government shutting them down? That conversation is straight ahead.
And Ivan Watson was among the crowds of protesters today in Cairo as the curfew approached. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got education! (INAUDIBLE) What people? Lots of boiling people, who sold us and runaway. We need freedom. All these people needs freedom. And we need you to support us and our situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Stubborn defiance has now spread across Egypt. A few hours from now we expect more scenes of mass demonstrations in Cairo and other cities. Our Ivan Watson was among the crowds of protesters today in Cairo as the curfew approached. Accompanied by the ominous sound of jet fighters overhead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): This is an unmistakable show of military force. Fighter jets flying low over Cairo's Tahrir Square, Liberation Square, which has been a symbol of defiance for days now against the Mubarak presidency. And people here are still chanting curfew is supposed to have begun minutes ago but they refuse to disperse.
I've been talking with the professor. What do you think when you see these fighter jets overhead?
Well, we're not going to be intimidated by all of this. This is a sign of weakness. It's not the signs of (INAUDIBLE) - if he's strong enough he would face the people, he would change his execution, he would drop down the assembly which has been thwarted.
WATSON: Do you think the fighter jets are a warning?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, not at all. As you can see, the people here are gathering more and more. It makes them stronger and stronger. These people are strong because they are strong from the heart. They are strong by holding each other, by helping each other out and that's the spirit of the Egyptian. (INAUDIBLE) we're already getting our spirits - (CROSSTALK)
WATSON: So there you hear it. You hear it there. The defiance ongoing from people here, demonstrators who have gathered here despite a curfew that the outgoing defense minister had called for on state television saying "please, adhere to a curfew" that was supposed to have started moments ago and continue until 8:00 in the morning.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Cairo.
LEMON: All right. Ivan. Egyptians are dealing with an internet shutdown unlike any in history. The country has cut off 97 percent of its web traffic. That's according to one expert and also shut down cell phone service. It happened fast cutting Egyptians off from each other and the rest of the world. So let's bring in Emmy award winning tech expert, Katie Linendoll on this. Katie, how do you pull the plug on the internet for an entire country?
KATIE LINENDOLL, CNN TECH EXPERT: I know it's a little wild. Let me take you through the timeline of this. So basically, there are four ISPs, internet service providers in Egypt. Earlier Thursday morning at about 5:20 a.m., they ordered, the government ordered these ISPs to actually shut down completely. This left about 23 million Egyptians, about a quarter of the population without any internet service.
Now with that understanding they also cut mobile services as well. So by cutting mobile services obviously no incoming and outgoing text or phone calls. The idea behind this was really to create order and to eliminate the chaos in the streets with the protests. However it only magnified the situation. Friends and family couldn't be contacted. You couldn't book a flight out. You couldn't reserve anything. And then on top of everything, banks, schools, businesses were all completely off the grid.
Now I'll tell you we've seen situations in Iran and also in China where they've limited access online. We have never in the history of the web seen a situation like this. It's really unprecedented to completely shut off the entire internet.
LEMON: Yes, so what were people doing, Katie, to get online?
LINENDOLL: Actually, they're using a lot of low tech solutions for hi-tech answers and the biggest one is dial up. A lot of activist groups are actually providing international calling option. So if you have a modem and you can connect through a land line and go dial up, which we know is really slow, in this case it's actually a luxury.
So they are providing mobile numbers if you do have an international calling plan to actually access an outside number. Now, with that, understand that Egyptians are scared once they get online that they're going to be traced or their IP addresses are going to be seen through. So what they're doing is actually doing web blocking software so they can't be traced back.
Also we're seeing as low technology is ham radios, faxes going through just to communicate messages. And of course, the most lowest technology, phones are now being able to be accessed so people are making those relay calls and then saying hey this is my message go out and put it on social networking sites.
But what's interesting to me, it's been a kill switch in terms of internet but they are not cutting off cameras and camcorders. So at some point we're going to see the images arise whether it's going to take a few days or a few weeks we don't know. But in light of the situation, we will see the images right the floor.
LEMON: Yes, not a good idea. It only delays it. You know, it's not good for the people there. But it delays it. But as you said, eventually we're going to see what's happening and it doesn't make the government or people in charge look good.
LINENDOLL: Right.
LEMON: Katie Linendoll, thank you.
LINENDOLL: Thank you.
LEMON: In Atlanta, demonstrators held a rally right in front of CNN headquarters and we went out there and found that much of their anger over the situation in Egypt is actually directed at the U.S. government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Down with injustice. Down, down with injustice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We got to help the people. They need justice.
MUSTAFA MAZHER, PROTESTER: If there's no sort of democracy that we're promoting here, in the Middle East and it's not represented over there, we're not doing our job here. We're supporting a government over there that's been in power for 30 years.
SEAN PHILLIPS, PROTESTER: I don't think that the Egyptian people would be free until they take down Mubarak.
LEMON (on camera): Tell what this is, it said "U.S. aid equals tear gas."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
LEMON: What does that mean?
AHMED NAZEEM, PROTESTER: This is the (INAUDIBLE) we giving to Egypt. We are supporting the corrupted regime by giving them money and weapons to be used against the Egyptian people and we want the U.S. to stop supporting this dictatorship and give the opportunity to Egyptians to elect their leaders.
LEMON: This sign says Americans should be aware of that?
SMI ALMALFOUR, PROTESTER: Of course. They should know their money is not being used in building democracy, it's being used to oppress the people. It's quite opposite of what was the purpose of the U.S. fund. It goes for a different message, it sends a different message. The U.S. aid for the military for Egypt is $1.3 billion. The economic aid is $250 million only. So if you compare that to that, that's the point - and that's the point of this sign is that we want aid (INAUDIBLE) to build infrastructure, to let the people live a normal life and build a democracy.
SAMED ABDELAZIZ, PROTEST ORGANIZER: We're not here to try to talk to Mubarak's government. We gave up on this a long time ago. We're here to talk to our government, the American government to ask them to stay true to our American principles of democracy and freedom by standing beside the Egyptian people that are dying in the little towns and villages over there.
SHERYFALI MOUSA, PROTESTER: President Mubarak has been there for 30 years. We want him out.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: That rally among the many held around the country and around the world. Why do many of the people in Egypt favor the military but not the police? We're going ask General Russel Honore next.
And Detroit police released a video to go with the story that we broke on this show. A gunman walks into a precinct and then opens fire. We'll show it to you straight ahead.
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LEMON: Time now for top stories on CNN. It's now Monday morning in Egypt and the national uprising there is entering its seventh day. Sunday brought tens of thousands of people back out on the streets in public squares in defiance of a government curfew. The U.S. is watching the chaotic situation very closely. The U.S. embassy is close. A live report from Cairo just ahead here on CNN.
Here in the U.S. and around the world demonstrators are marching in support of the protesters in Egypt. Marches were held this weekend in New York, Washington, Atlanta and Los Angeles. Just a day after people hit the streets in places like Toronto and Geneva. Different cities but a familiar demand, Mubarak, they say, must step down.
The FBI has joined the investigation of a dramatic bank robbery in Maryland. It happened Friday at a Capital One Bank in Tacoma park and was caught on camera by a TV news helicopter. The suspect ran outside holding a gun to the head of a teller he had taken hostage. He slipped on the ice when a dye pack exploded as the teller tried to escape six police officers opened fire killing the robber. The officers have been put on leave while the incident is being investigated.
Police in Tampa, Florida, say a mother has admitted to killing her two teenage children. The reason? They talked back to her and were mouthy. The 50-year-old Julie Shenker (ph) was charged with two counts of murder in the death of a 13-year-old son and a 16-year-old daughter. She was initially booked into jail but was transferred to Tampa General Hospital for a treatment of an existing medical condition. Classmates and friends held a candlelight vigil for the murdered teens, remembered as excellent students and sweet kids.
All right. This is a sad one. And it's uplifting too. You're watching Sergeant Andrew, there he is. Sergeant Andrew Ishmael of the Missouri National Guard.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. ANDREW ISHMAEL, MISSOURI NATIONAL GUARD: How are you guys doing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good.
ISHMAEL: Surprised? Were you surprised?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
ISHMAEL: I came just to watch your game. I love you guys.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Sergeant Ishmael surprised his 10-year-old daughter. Her name is Caylee and his 11-year-old son, Noah, at a basketball game in South St. Louis. That was on Saturday. The sergeant just got back from Afghanistan and he is traveling again but this time with his family to Disney World. Very nice.
Egyptians on the street may not like Hosni Mubarak, but they do like his army. Throughout the confrontation in Egypt, there have been stories of the army's good rapport with protesters. The world is watching what it will do. Many say the army's loyalty is key for Mubarak or any other political leader.
CNN contributor, retired general Russel Honore joins me now, live from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. General, thank you for joining us. What does the United States need to do to help restore order to Egypt, to help in restoring order to Egypt?
GEN. RUSSEL HONORE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Help and encourage them to protest in a peaceful way. Don't tear Cairo up. Don't tear the national buildings up. That's the message that should be going to the people. And the message to the Army is to stand up and those generals, take charge and speak to the people. The people respect the army.
LEMON: General, you spent some time in Egypt while serving in the U.S. Army. We have some photos of you there. What did you learn as the relationship between Egypt's army and its people, the police are now liked but the army is. Why is that?
HONORE: Well, the Egyptian army is a conscript army. They come out for two to three-year periods. So that's almost a half a million people rotating every 18 months to two years and they come from the people, so they are the people's soldiers. That's their relatives in uniform. Now inside the capital of Cairo, that is the Republican Guard. That is a heavy armored division. The specific mission is to protect Cairo.
LEMON: So is that the difference between the parliamentary forces and the central police?
HONORE: Yes. The Republican Guard is different than the regular army. It is a part of the regular army, but its job is to protect the city of Cairo. Then you have a force called the Central Security Forces. Those are the paramilitary forces, and their job is to do what they were doing actually, is to prevent rioting and protect buildings to include the embassies and to present any type of foreign are terrorist type force from operating within the country.
LEMON: I was reading this morning, general, and the paper says that the officer corps of Egypt's powerful military has been educated at defense colleges in the United States for 30 years. That's an article from the "New York Times." Tell us about that.
HONORE: They have a very well educated officer corps. Some of the finest generals I've ever met. They used to follow the Soviet models until the 1970s, and they converted to the U.S. and western force formations. They even used the same equipment. They are as well- equipped nearly as the Israeli army on ground combat and aerial combat with the F-16s. Those generals know what to do. They just need to do it and help calm the people.
LEMON: OK. So listen. Do you also have a warning for us, not just the army there. You said it is a chaotic situation, especially in situations like this, accurate reporting is crucial. We have to be careful on reporting on situations that may be just isolated events. Please explain that, general.
HONORE: From my experience in the old city of New Orleans, the press was reporting one thing and there was another thing happening on the street. There's an old saying - believe nothing you hear and half of what you see. And you might be right.
That's a lot of isolated reporting and we need to make sure governments are talking to governments. Before taking a report of someone off the street and turning that into chaos.
LEMON: All right.
HONORE: We need to keep that airport open and get people forward and get people back to work and kids in school and peaceful demonstrations.
LEMON: Retired General Russel Honore, thank you, sir.
Detroit Police released a surveillance video of a shoot-out at one precinct. You'll see it play out just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Warning. The video you are about to see, very graphic. Very graphic. Harrowing surveillance video inside a Detroit Police precinct as a gunman walks in and opens fire wounding four officers. Police returned fire and killed the shooter, his name is Lamar Moore. And as our Susan Candiotti digs into his background, the story gets stranger.
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SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At first, security cameras show a normal day on the job. Officers at work behind a front desk just inside the precinct's front door. Enter Lamar Moore in dark clothes, about to unleash an inexplicable fury. He walks past some vending machines hiding a shotgun.
CHIEF RALPH GODBEE, DETROIT POLICE: He walked in, indiscriminately began firing. And as you can imagine, I mean, utter chaos and pandemonium took place.
CANDIOTTI: The 39 seconds of terror, Moore gets off several rounds in front of the desk, then dives across it for a face-to-face combat. Eventually the gunman is shot dead. The four wounded officers survive. Taking a second look, Moore fires at point-blank range at this officer who managed to fire back even after a bullet sliced into one of his fingers.
GODBEE: Through it all, our officers maintained courageous calm.
CANDIOTTI: Why did Moore lashed out at police and what was he up to before the attack? Police say about 10 days earlier, Moore kidnapped and raped a 13-year-old run-away girl and, at times, kept her tied up in his basement and handcuffed to a toilet. She escaped still in handcuffs hours before the shooting.
At this point, police say the teenager appears to be his only sexual assault victim. The identity of the girl and her mother is being protected.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was like, if I ever get caught, I'm going to go to jail for the rest of my life. So I can't let you go, you're going to be stay here and be my (INAUDIBLE).
CANDIOTTI: Incredibly, at the very hour police were surrounding Moore's house, waiting for a search warrant, Moore sauntered into the police station and opened fire.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I almost threw up. Because he could have killed my baby. If you are capable of walking into a police station and opening fire like that? You could have done anything to her.
CANDIOTTI: Moore had a fiance, but police won't reveal what she told them.
(on camera): With Moore dead, we may never know why he attacked police. And in one final twist, investigators have yet another mystery on their hands - trying to figure out who burned down Moore's house two days after his shooting rampage.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Thank you, Susan.
I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. CNN presents "Rogue Justice."
