US warns of violence to come in Egypt

US warns of violence to come in Egypt

An anti-government protester swings an Egyptian flag, while smoking a cigarette, to beckon others to reinforce those at the frontline of clashes with pro-government supporters, near the Egyptian Museum in downtown Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Protesters and regime supporters skirmished in a second day of rock-throwing battles at a central Cairo square while new lawlessness spread around the city.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States on Thursday severely criticized what it called systematic attacks on journalists in Egypt and said they appeared to be an attempt to shut out reporting of even bigger anti-government demonstrations to come.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned "in the strongest terms" the pro-government mobs that beat, threatened and intimidated reporters in Cairo.

Attacks as well on peaceful demonstrators, human rights activists, foreigners and diplomats were "unacceptable under any circumstances," she said.

Clinton pointed the finger at the government of Egypt's 82-year-old president, Hosni Mubarak, without explicitly blaming it for the violence. She said, "It is especially in times of crisis that governments must demonstrate their adherence to these universal values,"

Egypt's government must hold accountable those responsible for the attacks and "must demonstrate its willingness to ensure journalists' ability to report on these events to the people of Egypt and to the world," she said.

Foreign photographers reported attacks by Mubarak supporters near Tahrir Square, the scene of vicious battles between Mubarak supporters and protesters demanding he step down after nearly 30 years in power.

The Egyptian government has accused media outlets of being sympathetic to protesters who want Mubarak to quit now rather than complete his term as he has pledged.

Among the many detained were correspondents for The New York Times, Washington Post and Al-Jazeera. Human rights groups said many activists also were taken away after a raid by the military police on a legal center in Cairo.

The Obama administration warned that the arrests and intimidation of reporters may be aimed at stopping the spread of the anti-government message ahead of a potentially critical protests Friday, when many Egyptians are expected to take to the streets after prayer services.

"It could well be that this is in anticipation of events tomorrow," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said. "We are bracing for a significant increase in the number of demonstrators on the streets and . the real prospect of a confrontation."

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs also offered a strong denunciation of reported "systematic targeting" of journalists. He said, "I think we need to be clear that the world is watching the actions that are taking place right now in Egypt."

On Capitol Hill, the Senate approved a non-binding resolution late Thursday urging Mubarak to hand over power to a caretaker government and begin a peaceful transition to a democratic society.

Amid heightened U.S. concern about rising violence in Egypt, President Barack Obama began his remarks at Thursday's National Prayer Breakfast with pointed hopes for better days ahead: "We pray that the violence in Egypt will end and the rights and aspirations of the Egyptian people will be realized."

And the administration complained Mubarak's government was failing to immediately start a process toward real democracy, continuing the U.S. pressure on its once strong ally to accept the call of hundreds of thousands of demonstrators over the past week for democratic change.

Clinton said the government needed to engage a "broad and credible representation of Egypt's opposition" in "serious negotiations on a peaceful and orderly transition."

The comments followed Wednesday's attack on protesters in Cairo's main square by hundreds of pro-government supporters, some riding horses and camels and wielding whips.

In Egypt, Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq acknowledged that the assault "seemed to have been organized." He promised an investigation.

Crowley blamed elements close to the government or ruling party for instigating the violence, though he said it was still unclear how high up the order came from.

The administration's call for an immediate transition from three decades of authoritarian rule in Egypt has coincided with American hopes that reforms in Jordan and Yemen could stave off similar revolt.

All three countries have experienced instability since protesters in Tunisia chased their leader from power last month.

Obama telephone Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh to welcome "significant reform measures" that Saleh's government announced.

The White House said Thursday that Obama also stressed that Saleh "now needs to follow up his pledge with concrete actions," and urged that security forces show restraint in dealing with protests.

Obama also urged forceful action against al-Qaida, which has turned the impoverished Arabian country into one of the main battlegrounds in the war on terror.

Clinton had a 15-minute phone conversation with Jordan's King Abdullah II to tell him the United States looked forward to working with his newly named prime minister and Cabinet.

"We are eager to continue to support Jordan during these difficult times," Crowley said. "We appreciate the example that Jordan has set in allowing freedom of expression during recent protests."

Separately Thursday, a senior intelligence official said Obama was warned of instability in Egypt "at the end of last year."

CIA official Stephanie O'Sullivan would provide no further detail during an open Senate confirmation hearing to be the deputy director of national intelligence.

The chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., told The Associated Press that the events "should not have come upon us with the surprise that they did."

She said the Internet's use in organizing demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt should have provided "much more warning," and that her committee would look into how intelligence agencies performed.

"Was someone looking at what was going on the Internet?" she asked.

US warns of violence to come in Egypt

US warns of violence to come in Egypt

An anti-government protester swings an Egyptian flag, while smoking a cigarette, to beckon others to reinforce those at the frontline of clashes with pro-government supporters, near the Egyptian Museum in downtown Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Protesters and regime supporters skirmished in a second day of rock-throwing battles at a central Cairo square while new lawlessness spread around the city.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States on Thursday severely criticized what it called systematic attacks on journalists in Egypt and said they appeared to be an attempt to shut out reporting of even bigger anti-government demonstrations to come.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned "in the strongest terms" the pro-government mobs that beat, threatened and intimidated reporters in Cairo.

Attacks as well on peaceful demonstrators, human rights activists, foreigners and diplomats were "unacceptable under any circumstances," she said.

Clinton pointed the finger at the government of Egypt's 82-year-old president, Hosni Mubarak, without explicitly blaming it for the violence. She said, "It is especially in times of crisis that governments must demonstrate their adherence to these universal values,"

Egypt's government must hold accountable those responsible for the attacks and "must demonstrate its willingness to ensure journalists' ability to report on these events to the people of Egypt and to the world," she said.

Foreign photographers reported attacks by Mubarak supporters near Tahrir Square, the scene of vicious battles between Mubarak supporters and protesters demanding he step down after nearly 30 years in power.

The Egyptian government has accused media outlets of being sympathetic to protesters who want Mubarak to quit now rather than complete his term as he has pledged.

Among the many detained were correspondents for The New York Times, Washington Post and Al-Jazeera. Human rights groups said many activists also were taken away after a raid by the military police on a legal center in Cairo.

The Obama administration warned that the arrests and intimidation of reporters may be aimed at stopping the spread of the anti-government message ahead of a potentially critical protests Friday, when many Egyptians are expected to take to the streets after prayer services.

"It could well be that this is in anticipation of events tomorrow," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said. "We are bracing for a significant increase in the number of demonstrators on the streets and . the real prospect of a confrontation."

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs also offered a strong denunciation of reported "systematic targeting" of journalists. He said, "I think we need to be clear that the world is watching the actions that are taking place right now in Egypt."

On Capitol Hill, the Senate approved a non-binding resolution late Thursday urging Mubarak to hand over power to a caretaker government and begin a peaceful transition to a democratic society.

Amid heightened U.S. concern about rising violence in Egypt, President Barack Obama began his remarks at Thursday's National Prayer Breakfast with pointed hopes for better days ahead: "We pray that the violence in Egypt will end and the rights and aspirations of the Egyptian people will be realized."

And the administration complained Mubarak's government was failing to immediately start a process toward real democracy, continuing the U.S. pressure on its once strong ally to accept the call of hundreds of thousands of demonstrators over the past week for democratic change.

Clinton said the government needed to engage a "broad and credible representation of Egypt's opposition" in "serious negotiations on a peaceful and orderly transition."

The comments followed Wednesday's attack on protesters in Cairo's main square by hundreds of pro-government supporters, some riding horses and camels and wielding whips.

In Egypt, Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq acknowledged that the assault "seemed to have been organized." He promised an investigation.

Crowley blamed elements close to the government or ruling party for instigating the violence, though he said it was still unclear how high up the order came from.

The administration's call for an immediate transition from three decades of authoritarian rule in Egypt has coincided with American hopes that reforms in Jordan and Yemen could stave off similar revolt.

All three countries have experienced instability since protesters in Tunisia chased their leader from power last month.

Obama telephone Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh to welcome "significant reform measures" that Saleh's government announced.

The White House said Thursday that Obama also stressed that Saleh "now needs to follow up his pledge with concrete actions," and urged that security forces show restraint in dealing with protests.

Obama also urged forceful action against al-Qaida, which has turned the impoverished Arabian country into one of the main battlegrounds in the war on terror.

Clinton had a 15-minute phone conversation with Jordan's King Abdullah II to tell him the United States looked forward to working with his newly named prime minister and Cabinet.

"We are eager to continue to support Jordan during these difficult times," Crowley said. "We appreciate the example that Jordan has set in allowing freedom of expression during recent protests."

Separately Thursday, a senior intelligence official said Obama was warned of instability in Egypt "at the end of last year."

CIA official Stephanie O'Sullivan would provide no further detail during an open Senate confirmation hearing to be the deputy director of national intelligence.

The chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., told The Associated Press that the events "should not have come upon us with the surprise that they did."

She said the Internet's use in organizing demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt should have provided "much more warning," and that her committee would look into how intelligence agencies performed.

"Was someone looking at what was going on the Internet?" she asked.

Gangs attack foreigners in Egypt's growing mayhem

Gangs attack foreigners in Egypt's growing mayhem

A wounded anti-government protestor is tended during clashes in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Another bout of heavy gunfire and clashes erupted Thursday around dusk in the Cairo square at the center of Egypt's anti-government chaos, while new looting and arson spread around the capital. Gangs of thugs supporting President Hosni Mubarak attacked reporters, foreigners, and human rights workers and the army rounded up foreign journalists.

CAIRO (AP) -- Menacing gangs backing President Hosni Mubarak attacked journalists and human rights activists Thursday in an ugly turn in Egypt's crisis as government opponents pushed supporters out of Cairo's main square in a second day of battles. Organizers called for protesters trying to topple the regime to fill every square in the huge capital on Friday.

The new vice president, widely considered the first successor Mubarak has ever designated, fueled anti-foreign sentiment by going on state television and blaming outsiders for fomenting unrest. The government has accused media outlets of being sympathetic to protesters who want the president to quit now rather than serve out his term, as he has vowed to do.

Mubarak, 82, told ABC television in an interview that he was fed up and wants to resign. But he said he can't for fear the country would sink into chaos. He said he was very unhappy about the two days of clashes in central Tahrir Square.

"I do not want to see Egyptians fighting each other," he was quoted as saying.

The violence that had been concentrated in Tahrir spread around the city of 18 million, with a new wave of arson and looting.

Soldiers, mainly protecting government buildings and important institutions, remained passive as they have since replacing police on the streets almost a week ago. Few uniformed police have been seen around the city in that time, and protesters say many of them have stripped off their uniforms and mixed in with the gangs of marauding thugs.

"When there are demonstrations of this size, there will be foreigners who come and take advantage and they have an agenda to raise the energy of the protesters," Vice President Omar Suleiman said on state television.

Pro-government mobs beat foreign journalists with sticks and fists Thursday. The Committee to Protect Journalists said 24 reporters were detained in 24 hours, including representatives of The Washington Post and The New York Times, on the streets outside Tahrir Square. Twenty-one journalists were assaulted, including two with Fox News.

One Greek journalist was stabbed in the leg with a screwdriver, and a photographer was punched in the face, his equipment smashed. The Arabic news network Al-Arabiya pleaded for the army to protect its offices and journalists, and Al-Jazeera said four of its correspondents were attacked. The BBC's foreign editor said security forces had seized the network's equipment in a hotel to stop it broadcasting.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs denounced reports of "systematic targeting" of journalists and the State Department described it as a "concerted campaign to intimidate."

"I think we need to be clear that the world is watching the actions that are taking place right now in Egypt," Gibbs said.

Human rights activists were also targeted. Military police stormed the offices of an Egyptian rights group as activists were meeting and arrested at least 30, including two from the London-based Amnesty International, Amnesty spokesman Tom Mackey said. New York-based Human Rights Watch said one of its activists was also among those arrested.

Amnesty's secretary-general Salil Shetty demanded their immediate release saying they should be allowed "to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt at this crucial time without fear of harassment or detention."

Mubarak's top ally, the United States, has pressed him to quickly transition to a democratic government but has said his earlier gestures, including forming a new government, were insufficient.

The crisis that began on Jan. 25 when protesters launched the biggest challenge ever to Mubarak's 30-year rule has grown perilous. The day after Mubarak went on television late Tuesday and refused to step down, thousands of his supporters attacked anti-government protesters in Tahrir Square, where they had held a peaceful vigil for days.

The Mubarak supporters started fierce battles with firebombs, machetes and chunks of pavement that lasted throughout the night and all day Thursday.

After nightfall, the fighting died down with protesters' hold on the square and nearby streets unbroken. Nearly 10,000 remained in the square, some dancing and singing in victory as others - battered and bandaged - lay down exhausted to sleep or drank tea in the center of the rubble-strewn roundabout. Throughout the day, they gained in numbers and got supplies of food and medicine.

"Thank God, we managed to protect the whole area," said Abdul-Rahman, a taxi driver who was among thousands who stayed in the square through the night, hunkered down against the thousands besieging the entrances. "We prevented the pro-Mubarak people from storming the streets leading to the square." He refused to give his full name.

At least eight people have been killed and about 900 injured in the two days of fighting around Tahrir.

Many of the square's defenders had cotton padding and grubby bandages dangling from their faces, arms and legs. Others had chunks of rock stuck to their hair and clumps of dust in their beards. Many had the trimmed beards of Muslim conservatives, a sign of the Muslim Brotherhood's role in the fight.

Under an onslaught of international condemnation for Wednesday's assault on protesters by pro-Mubarak rioters, the government offered more concessions to the protesters, but that did nothing to calm the fury.

The anti-Mubarak movement has vowed to intensify protests to force the president out by Friday. The Facebook page that started the protest movement said supporters should gather at noon Friday on all Egyptian squares "so that we can put the last nail in the regime's coffin, and declare the victory of the Jan. 25 revolution." Friday is the weekend in Egypt and millions attend prayers at noon in thousands of mosques across the city.

An Egyptian official said about 3,000 police from southern Egypt were headed overnight to Tahrir, exactly a week after officers battled anti-government protesters there then melted away from the streets for reasons that remain mysterious. Mubarak, his new vice president and prime minister all promised to get to the bottom of their disappearance.

The attorney-general indicated that the former interior minister, Habib el-Adly, who was in charge of the police force when they left the streets, is a suspect in the investigation. He ordered an asset freeze and travel ban against el-Adly and the former housing and tourism ministers, who were among the unpopular millionaire businessmen who dominated the government Mubarak dissolved early Saturday.

The redeployment of the hated police would be just another volatile ingredient added to the mix of an already explosive situation.

In the capital on Thursday, a new wave of looting and arson began, after easing since the weekend. A fire raged in a major supermarket outside Sheikh Zayed, a suburb of the capital, and looters ransacked the building. A residential building neighboring a 5-star hotel on the Nile River corniche burned blocks away from Tahrir. Other fires erupted in the Cairo district of Shubra, north of the center, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

The military and the security forces appeared to be doing little to stop the looting or the Tahrir clashes. In the interview, Suleiman said without elaborating that the police had "lost some of its capabilities" and that the army was struggling to fill the void.

Protesters accuse the regime and the ruling party of organizing a force of paid thugs and police in civilian clothes to attack them Wednesday afternoon, sparking the violence that raged until Thursday night.

The prime minister apologized for Wednesday's assault and acknowledged it may have been organized, though he said he didn't know by whom. Suleiman promised Mubarak's son Gamal would not run in presidential elections in September. Before the protests, Mubarak was widely expected to try to pass his power to his son in a hereditary succession, despite significant public opposition.

Suleiman also offered to hold negotiations on the country's future even with the regime's biggest domestic enemy, the Muslim Brotherhood. But he also accused the Brotherhood of inciting the violence.

Mubarak's regime has long rejected any talks with the Brotherhood, which calls for an Islamic state in Egypt, and has arrested thousands of its members in the past. The Brotherhood is among the many disparate anti-Mubarak groups organizing the protests, though secular activists have so far dominated the movement. All have rejected any dialogue with the government before Mubarak steps down.

The gestures would once have been stunning, but on Thursday they were drowned out by the chaos.

"Hosni Mubarak's every breath is a lie," said Assem Moussa, a 40-year-old businessman among the protesters. "All the promises and the concessions are part of the lies. He is trying to deceive the people."

Moussa pulled a white cloth out of his pocket, saying, "This is my funeral shroud. If I die here, I will die for our freedom."

During Thursday's fighting, bands of Mubarak supporters moved through side streets around Tahrir, trading volleys of stone-throwing with the protesters and attacking cars to stop supplies from reaching the protest camp. One band stopped a car, ripped open the trunk and found boxes of juice, water and food, which they took before forcing the driver to flee.

Fighting centered on and below a highway overpass 500 yards (meters) north of Tahrir's center that regime supporters had used as high ground to pelt the crowds. Protesters swept over the bridge in stone-throwing battles.

At one point, a police truck barreled wildly through the crowds under the bridge, mowing down several people in its path, according to footage aired on Al-Jazeera. Heavy barrages of gunfire were heard from time to time.

The morning saw a brief attempt by the military to stop the fighting - its first since the melee started Wednesday. But the troops stood aside when clashes resumed in the afternoon, moving inside their tanks and armored vehicles without intervening.

The Mubarak backers seethed with anger at a protest movement that state TV and media have depicted as causing the chaos and paralyzing businesses and livelihoods.

"You in Tahrir are the reason we can't live a normal life," one screamed as he threw stones in a side street.

The anti-Mubarak youths posted sentries on the roofs and balconies of buildings around the square to raise the alert of any approaching attackers and rain stones on them. Other lookouts in the streets banged metal poles against pedestrian barriers alarm when they sighted incoming Mubarak backers.

One sentry waved his arms in the air like an airport runway traffic controller, directing defenders carrying piles of stones as ammunition to a side street to fend off an assault. But then another sentry waved a hand across his chest horizontally in a new signal. The crowd understood: false alarm, and they melted back into the square.

An exodus of foreigners, meanwhile, continued for another day with the U.N. evacuating much of its staff. The vice president said 1 million foreign tourists have fled the country, costing $1 billion in lost revenues from one of Egypt's most important industries.

Eagles Name New Defensive Coordinator

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Philadelphia Eagles have named Juan Castillo, who has spent the last 13 seasons with the team as an offensive line coach, their new defensive coordinator.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Delaware Woman Charged With False Report Of Sex Assault

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NEW CASTLE, Del. (AP) - New Castle County Police have charged a Wilmington woman with falsely reporting a sexual assault.

Twenty-five-year-old Brittani Eatmon is charged with falsely reporting an incident. She is being held on $500 secured bond.

Police say on Tuesday night, Eatmon reported that an acquaintance had tried to sexually assault her at his home. Officers say Eatmon had inconsistencies in her statements.

For full story go to:

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Study: Philly’s City Council Gets Most Time Off

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A new report out this morning finds that members of Philadelphia City Council have the longest-serving incumbents compared to other cities — and get the most time off.

The report by the research arm of the Pew Charitable Trusts compared the 17-member Philadelphia City Council with those in 14 other major cities.

One finding, according to project director Thomas Ginsburg, is that the number of weeks in which there are no formal meetings is greatest in Philadelphia.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Principal shot, killed at Calif. elementary school

Principal shot, killed at Calif. elementary school

In this undated photo provided by the Placerville Police Department, John Leubbers is shown. Authorities arrested Leubbers, a janitor, after an administrator was shot at a Northern California elementary school Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011l. Leubbers was arrested at his home about an hour after authorities launched a manhunt, Placerville police Capt. Mike Scott told KCRA.

PLACERVILLE, Calif. (AP) -- A school janitor was arrested Wednesday in the killing of a Northern California elementary school principal who was hailed as a role model for other educators.

No children were hurt in the late-morning shooting in the office at Louisiana Schnell Elementary School in Placerville, but one student may have witnessed the shooting, Police Chief George Nielson said.

Principal Sam LaCara, 50, died in the attack, Nielson said.

Authorities said they arrested janitor John Luebbers, 44, at his home about an hour after launching a manhunt. Investigators were trying to determine a motive for the shooting about 50 miles east of Sacramento.

LaCara, who died at Marshall Medical Center, was called a dedicated leader by Bob Wells, executive director of the Association of California School Administrators.

"Sam has been a role model to school leaders for his dedication to students and to public schools," Wells said. LaCara had served as a treasurer of the group.

Nielson was asked by reporters if Luebbers had been laid off. The chief said that possibility was part of the investigation, but he was uncertain about Luebbers' employment status.

"There may have been some kind of dispute between the principal and the custodian," Nielson said.

Police do not believe the janitor had a criminal history.

Nielson said LaCara's family was devastated. "They are requesting privacy at this time," he said.

Chaplain Jim Thompson met with the family at the hospital after being sent by law enforcement officers.

"They're very, very angry at the perpetrator, who they happen to know, (he) knew the principal very well," Thompson told KCRA-TV.

KCRA reported that LaCara, of Sacramento, was married and has three daughters.

California Highway Patrol Lt. Chuck King said LaCara's wife was driving on Highway 50 to the hospital after hearing about the shooting when she was pulled over by a CHP officer for speeding. Instead of being ticketed, she was escorted to the hospital.

The state's superintendent of public instruction, Tom Torlakson, thanked police and school officials for quickly securing the campus in the wake of the shooting. Classes were canceled at all district schools Thursday.

"Our schools should be safe havens from guns and violence, and I'm deeply saddened when harm comes to anyone working to educate California's children," Torlakson said.

Police also commended the school staff for quickly locking down the school and protecting the children. Students were taken to the county fairground, where they were released to their parents.

"The children were safe in this incident. The principal was the target in this, unfortunately," Nielson said.

A candlelight vigil for LaCara was planned Wednesday night outside a Placerville church.

Blizzard spreads snowy shroud over nearly half US

Blizzard spreads snowy shroud over nearly half US

Snow accumulates in a pickup truck that was stranded and left open on Lake Shore Drive, Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011 in Chicago. A winter blizzard of historic proportions wobbled an otherwise snow-tough Chicago, stranding hundreds of drivers for up to 12 hours overnight on the city's showcase lakeshore thoroughfare and giving many city schoolchildren their first ever snow day.

CHICAGO (AP) -- A fearsome storm spread a smothering shroud of white over nearly half the nation Wednesday, snarling transportation from Oklahoma to New England, burying parts of the Midwest under 2 feet of snow and laying down dangerously heavy ice in the Northeast that was too much for some buildings to bear.

Tens of millions of people stayed home. The hardy few who ventured out faced howling winds that turned snowflakes into face-stinging needles. Chicago's 20.2 inches of snow was the city's third-largest amount on record. In New York's Central Park, the pathways resembled skating rinks.

The storm that resulted from two clashing air masses was, if not unprecedented, extraordinarily rare for its size and ferocious strength.

"A storm that produces a swath of 20-inch snow is really something we'd see once every 50 years - maybe," National Weather Service meteorologist Thomas Spriggs said.

Across the storm's path, lonely commuters struggled against drifts 3 and 4 feet deep in eerily silent streets, some of which had not seen a plow's blade since the snow started a day earlier. Parkas and ski goggles normally reserved for the slopes became essential for getting to work.

"This is probably the most snow I've seen in the last 34 years," joked 34-year-old Chicagoan Michael George. "I saw some people cross-country skiing on my way to the train. It was pretty wild."

Although skies were beginning to clear by mid-afternoon over much of the nation's midsection, the storm promised to leave a blast of bitter cold in its wake. Overnight temperatures in the upper Midwest were expected to fall to minus 5 to minus 20, with wind chills as low as minus 30.

The system was blamed for the deaths of at least a dozen people, including a homeless man who burned to death on New York's Long Island as he tried to light cans of cooking fuel and a woman in Oklahoma City who was killed while being pulled behind a truck on a sled that hit a guard rail.

Airport operations slowed to a crawl nationwide, and flight cancellations reached 13,000 for the week, making this system the most disruptive so far this winter. A massive post-Christmas blizzard led to about 10,000 cancellations.

In the winter-weary Northeast, thick ice collapsed several structures, including a gas station canopy on Long Island and an airplane hangar and garages near Boston. In at least two places, workers heard the structures beginning to crack and narrowly escaped.

In Middletown, Conn., the entire third floor of a building failed, littering the street with bricks and snapping two trees. Acting Fire Marshal Al Santostefano said two workers fled when they heard a cracking sound.

"It's like a bomb scene," Santostefano said. "Thank God they left the building when they did."

More than a half-dozen states began digging out from up to a foot of snow that made roads treacherous and left hundreds of thousands of homes without power.

Chicago public schools canceled classes for a second straight day. And the city's iconic Lake Shore Drive remained shut down, nearly a day after drivers abandoned hundreds of snowbound vehicles.

The famous freeway appeared as if rush hour had been stopped in time, with three lanes of cars cluttering the pavement amid snow drifts that stood as high as the windshields. Bulldozers worked to clear the snow from around the cars, which were then plucked out by tow trucks one by one.

As the storm built to full strength Tuesday evening, 26-year-old Lindsey Wilson sat for hours on a stranded city bus. She eventually joined other passengers who tried to walk home. She made it about 100 feet before she couldn't see anything around her, including the bus she'd just left.

Fearing she would be swallowed by mounting snow drifts, Wilson turned back and spent the night on the bus.

"I thought if I fall over, what would happen if I got buried under a pile of snow?" she said.

Some motorists came away angry, frustrated that city didn't close the crucial thoroughfare earlier. Others were mad at themselves for going out during the storm or not using another route.

"In 31 years with the city, I haven't experienced anything like we did at Lake Shore Drive," said Raymond Orozco, chief of staff for Mayor Richard M. Daley. "Hundreds of people were very inconvenienced, and we apologize for that."

Orozco took responsibility for the decision not to close the drive as soon as snow began to fall Tuesday, but insisted he stood by the choice. He also hinted that his boss wasn't satisfied.

"I think the mayor knows we can always do better," Orozco said.

At dusk Wednesday, more than 200 cars remained on the drive, and city workers planned to work through the night to remove them. But it wasn't clear whether the job would be done in time for the morning rush.

Elsewhere, utility crews raced to restore power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses in Ohio, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where freezing rain and ice brought down electrical lines.

Rolling blackouts were implemented across Texas, including in Super Bowl host city Dallas, due to high demand during a rare ice storm. The outages would not affect Cowboys Stadium in suburban Arlington, said Jeamy Molina, a spokeswoman for utility provider Oncor. But other Super Bowl facilities, such as team hotels, were not exempt, she said.

The storm derived its power from the collision of cold air sweeping down from Canada and warm, moist air coming up from the south.

"The atmosphere doesn't like that contrast in temperature. Things get mixed together and you have a storm like this," said Gino Izzo, another weather service meteorologist. "The jet stream up in the atmosphere was like the engine and the warm air was the fuel."

The contrasts were most dramatic in Texas earlier in the week, when one part of the state reported temperatures in the single digits and another part had temperatures in the 70s, with near-tropical humidity.

"That was the breeding ground for this storm," Izzo said.

Louis Uccellini, director of the government's National Centers for Environmental Prediction, said the storm also drew strength from the La Nina (la NEEN'-ya) condition currently affecting the tropical Pacific Ocean.

La Nina is a periodic cooling of the surface temperatures of the tropical Pacific Ocean, the opposite of the better-known El Nino (el NEEN'-yoh) warming. Both can have significant impacts on weather around the world by changing the movement of winds and high and low pressure systems.

Still, some people in the storm's wake shrugged off the weather - and nearly the whole season.

"It's winter. It should have snow and ice. It's the way it is," said Vincent Zuza of Chatham, N.J., who was waiting for a flight to Salt Lake City for a ski trip after his first flight was canceled Wednesday. "You can't get too upset about it, and you can't control it. You just have to make the best of it."

For some of those battered by the storm, there was one whimsical ray of hope: The world's most famous weather forecaster - with four legs - predicted an early spring.

Punxsutawney Phil's handlers told Groundhog Day revelers at Gobbler's Knob, a tiny hill in Punxsutawney, Pa., that the groundhog had not seen his shadow, meaning winter will end within six weeks, according to tradition.

Senate Republicans lose vote on health law

Senate Republicans lose vote on health law

Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., left, with Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., speaks about health care at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011. A Republican drive to repeal the year-old health care law ended in party-line defeat in the Senate on Wednesday, leaving the Supreme Court to render a final, unpredictable verdict on an issue steeped in political and constitutional controversy.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Republican drive to repeal the year-old health care law ended in party-line defeat in the Senate on Wednesday, leaving the Supreme Court to render a final, unpredictable verdict on an issue steeped in political and constitutional controversy. The vote was 47-51.

Moments earlier, the Senate had agreed to make one relatively minor change in the law, voting to strip out a paperwork requirement for businesses.

President Barack Obama, who has vowed to veto any total repeal of his signature legislative accomplishment, has said he would accept the change. It does not directly affect health care.

Republicans conceded in advance their attempt at total repeal would fall short. But they also said they had accomplished an objective of forcing rank and file Democrats to take a position on an issue that reverberated in the 2010 campaign and may play a role in 2012.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said the vote marked an opportunity for Democrats who voted for the bill last year "to listen to those who have desperately been trying to get your attention."

"To say, yes, maybe my vote for this bill was a mistake, and that we can do better," McConnell said.

Democrats worked to minimize any political repercussions, a concern for a party already acutely aware it must defend 23 seats - and its shrunken Senate majority - in the 2012 elections.

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the Republican repeal movement would "take away a child's right to get health insurance and instead give insurance companies the right to use asthma or diabetes as an excuse to take away that care."

"It would kick kids off their parents' health insurance," Reid said. "It would take away seniors' rights to a free wellness check."

Democrats also countered with the proposed repeal of the law's requirement that businesses, charities, and state and local governments file income tax forms every time they purchase $600 or more in goods.

It was approved 81-17, after Republicans pointed out it had originally been their idea.

Across the street from the Capitol, Democrats convened a Judiciary Committee hearing to solicit testimony on the constitutionality of the law they passed and Obama signed months ago.

"Many who argue the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional are the same people who condemn judicial activism," said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who presided. "They are pushing the Supreme Court to strike down this law because they could not defeat it in Congress."

Republicans were scathing in response.

"The sensible process would have been to have . held a hearing on the law's constitutionality before the bill passed, not after," said Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa. "Like Alice in Wonderland, sentence first, verdict afterward."

Two federal judges have ruled the law is unconstitutional, partially or in its entirety, citing a requirement for individuals to purchase coverage and pay a penalty in taxes if they fail to do so. Two other judges have upheld the law.

The controversy has yet to reach the Supreme Court, but it is widely expected to, and Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., announced he would file legislation urging the justices to act quickly.

The maneuvering occurred around a law as ambitious as any in recent years, and as controversial. According to the Congressional Budget Office, it would expand coverage to tens of millions who lack it, crack down on insurance industry abuses and cut federal budget deficits. At its core, the bill would require most Americans to purchase insurance, a so-called individual mandate that has become one of the principal points of opposition among Republicans and the tea party activists who propelled them to gains last fall.

The bill's critics argue the law gave government too large a role in the health care system, will harm Medicare and raises taxes and fees that will burden the economy. They also sharply dispute the CBO estimate that deficits will fall once the bill takes effect, arguing that the forecasts rest on spending cuts to Medicare and other programs that will not materialize.

Either way, the day's events shaped up as the latest maneuvering in a struggle that has spanned more than two years.

Republicans said a proposal by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., to eliminate the reporting requirement to the Internal Revenue Service was legislative pilferage, noting that Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., filed a bill to that effect last year.

The measure calls for $44 billion in spending cuts to offset the revenue loss from the change, but unlike Johanns' earlier measure, Stabenow's specifies that none of the funds can come from Social Security.

Under federal law, Social Security benefits are generally guaranteed. As a result, the provision Stabenow advanced assures merely that no administrative costs can be cut at the agency.

No similar protection was included for the agency that oversees Medicare.

The House approved legislation repealing the health care law last month on a party-line vote, ignoring a veto threat from Obama and Reid's blunt statement the bill would never see the light of day in the Senate. McConnell responded quickly that he would look for an opportunity to force a vote.

All 47 Republicans voted to repeal the law, but no Democrat joined them.

At a news conference shortly after the vote, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the chairman of the party's campaign committee, said the vote marked the "first steps in a long road that will culminate in 2012 whereby we will expose the flaws and the weaknesses in this legislation."

The law that passed a year ago had the support of 58 Democrats and two independents aligned with them. All 40 Republicans voted against it.

Democratic ranks have been thinned since then, and their current majority is 53-47.

Of those 53 seats, 23 are on the ballot in 2012, including several that Republicans are targeting. One on the list, Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, said in advance he would oppose the Republican repeal proposal.

"There are a lot of good parts in the bill and some that I will work to improve," Nelson told reporters in his home state. "The repealers already have health care. But they're ready, willing and eager to take it away from hundreds of thousands of Nebraskans."

Heavy gunfire rings out in Cairo protest square

Heavy gunfire rings out in Cairo protest square

Pro-government demonstrators, bottom, watch as cars burn during clashes with anti-government demonstrators, top, behind barriers, in Tahrir square, the center of anti-government demonstrations, in Cairo, Egypt, early Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Thousands of supporters and opponents of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak battled in Cairo's main square all day Wednesday, raining stones, bottles and firebombs on each other in scenes of uncontrolled violence as soldiers stood by without intervening.

CAIRO (AP) -- Bursts of heavy gunfire are ringing out in Cairo's Tahrir Square, and a protest organizer says three anti-government demonstrators have been killed.

Mustafa al-Naggar says he saw the bodies of three dead protesters being carried toward an ambulance before dawn on Thursday. He says the automatic weapons fire directed into the square came from at least three locations off in the distance.

The Egyptian military has had the square ringed with tank squads to try to keep order, but al-Naggar says they did not intervene.

The health minister did not answer a phone call seeking confirmation of the deaths.

Hours earlier, supporters of President Hosni Mubarak armed with rocks, sticks and firebombs charged into the square in what appeared to be an orchestrated assault against protesters.

Hoop Gurlz At Phila. Front Page News

Hoop Gurlz At Phila. Front Page News

An overwhelming choice at No. 1 in the ESPN HoopGurlz Super 60, Breanna Stewart of North Syracuse, N.Y., pledged to Connecticut after watching the Huskies dismantle No. 3 Duke on Monday night.

Breanna Stewart had a moment of clarity in her recruitment, followed by another. The 6-foot-3 forward from North Syracuse, N.Y., was being overwhelmed by the options afforded the top-ranked junior in the country.

The first moment happened in October when Stewart announced that she had narrowed her list of schools to consider to 10. With the scope narrowed, she was able to zero in and cut the list even more during her junior season at Cicero-North Syracuse High School (North Syracuse, N.Y.).

When Stewart cut her list to her final three -- Connecticut, Duke and Penn State -- it opened the door for her to make an early commitment.

"That just made it a lot easier to think about each one individually," Stewart said.

The trip to the Storrs, Conn., campus was Stewart's third unofficial visit. And now there's no need to make any more. On Tuesday she announced her verbal commitment to the Huskies.

Stewart cited the proximity to her family's home in upstate New York as a factor in addition to the basketball-related considerations. And of her three finalists, she had the strongest bond with the Connecticut coaching staff and players.

With approximately 17 months before Stewart can officially step on campus as a Husky, several players from the current team will have graduated, starting with seniors Maya Moore and Lorin Dixon. Junior Tiffany Hayes will also have graduated and Caroline Doty, a redshirt junior, could be gone as well, depending on what she does with her redshirt season.

But for Stewart, her experience playing for USA Basketball has fostered relationships with two players that will be teammates during her tenure at UConn. Fellow junior Morgan Tuck, a 6-2 forward from Bolingbrook, Ill., joined Stewart on the U17 World Championship team that won FIBA gold this summer in France. At the time, Tuck, the No. 12 prospect in the 2012 class, was undecided, but committed to UConn in November after an unofficial visit.

Connecticut's latest commit, Breanna Stewart, was second in scoring and rebounding despite being fourth in minutes for the USA team that took gold at the FIBA U17 World Championships last summer.

Perhaps more significant was the relationship formed between USA teammate Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, the ESPN HoopGurlz No. 1 senior in the country, as she was one of two players on the U17 roster who had made a college decision.

Mosqueda-Lewis was very forward with her opinion of Stewart and her desire to be teammates again when she coined the nickname "Baby Husky" for Stewart.

"She gave me that nickname and everyone knew it," Stewart said.

Stewart said that the recruitment efforts of Mosqueda-Lewis and other players she's become friends with through her extensive summers of travel basketball didn't impact her ultimate decision.

"I just blew it off," Stewart said of Mosqueda-Lewis' tactic at the time.

Whether it was wishful thinking or clairvoyance remains to be seen, but what is crystal clear is that Geno Auriemma's program is well equipped for life after Moore.

Stewart gives the Huskies the top player in consecutive classes. If history is any lesson, looking back on the recruiting hauls of 2006 and 2007, when UConn landed Tina Charles and Maya Moore back-to-back, the program isn't going to suffer any real rebuilding years.

But Stewart is also well aware of the heightened expectations placed on top players going to top programs.

"Being a UConn commit, if I have a bad game I know I'll hear, 'She doesn't look that good,' " Stewart said. "I have to keep my stuff in check. I think I'm just going to play the way I play."

Stewart is very certain of her decision, despite the recent transfer of freshman forward Samarie Walker. Stewart said the transfer happened right as she was becoming sure of where she wanted to go.

"Samarie leaving, it made me consider things about my commitment and to the level I want to play," Stewart said.

There aren't a lot of maybes with Stewart. She is the best player in her class, has proven herself against the best players in the United States and abroad, and she is committed to reaching her potential as a player. She has Olympic aspirations, including trying out for the U19 national team this spring, and she is positive that Connecticut is the right setting to make her goals happen.

Brady Edges Vick For Top Offensive Player Award

DALLAS (AP) – Tom Brady tore up the NFL with his precision passing and dynamic guidance of the New England Patriots’ offense.

That was in 2007, when he ran away with The Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year award.

Ditto for 2010.

Brady won the honor Tuesday for the second time in four seasons.

The record-setting quarterback, who had a string of 355 passes without being intercepted, received 21 votes from a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league. He easily beat Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick, who got 11 votes.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

‘Jihad Jane’ Pleads Guilty

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The terror defendant known as “Jihad Jane” plead guilty to terrorism charges in federal court Tuesday. The Montgomery County woman is in custody.

Colleen LaRose, 47, who used the screen names “Jihad Jane,” “SisterOfTerror” and “ExtremeSister4Life,” plead guilty to charges including conspiracy to support terrorists and kill in a foreign country.

LaRose has admitted she worked obsessively to recruit and incite jihadists, took an assignment to kill a Swedish artist, and she travelled to Europe to be closer to her co-conspirators as well as her target, but the murder was not carried out.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

‘Jihad Jane’ Pleads Guilty

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The terror defendant known as “Jihad Jane” plead guilty to terrorism charges in federal court Tuesday. The Montgomery County woman is in custody.

Colleen LaRose, 47, who used the screen names “Jihad Jane,” “SisterOfTerror” and “ExtremeSister4Life,” plead guilty to charges including conspiracy to support terrorists and kill in a foreign country.

LaRose has admitted she worked obsessively to recruit and incite jihadists, took an assignment to kill a Swedish artist, and she travelled to Europe to be closer to her co-conspirators as well as her target, but the murder was not carried out.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

United Nations Dubs 2011 ‘International Year Of Chemistry’

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — There’s a concerted effort this year to make chemistry cool by people who think it already is. The United Nations has dubbed 2011 the International Year of Chemistry, and the movement’s nerve center for the United States is in Philadelphia.

If only the millions of kids captivated by sports stars could be similarly captured by chemistry:

“Find the LeBron James of science.”

That’s what Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris suggests could spark some interest in a broad field that has room for rock stars — and the kind of blockbuster thinking that’s behind the tech boom, from Facebook to the iPad.

For full story go to: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Sheriff: Kidnapped boy, 4, found dead in CA canal

Sheriff: Kidnapped boy, 4, found dead in CA canal

FILE - This undated file photo provided by the Patterson, Calif., police, shows four-year-old Juliani Cardenas. Authorities said Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011, they found the body of Cardenas in a Central California canal, two weeks after he was kidnapped from his home. A water department worker spotted Juliani Cardenas' body floating in the Delta-Mendota Canal, said Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson. The body was found about 30 miles downstream from where a vehicle belonging to the man suspected of kidnapping Juliani was recovered last week.

PATTERSON, Calif. (AP) -- Authorities said Tuesday they found the body of a 4-year-old boy in a Central California canal, capping the search for the child who was kidnapped from his home two weeks ago.

A water department worker spotted Juliani Cardenas' body floating in the Delta-Mendota Canal and called 911 around 7:30 a.m., said Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson. The body was found about 30 miles downstream from where a vehicle belonging to the man suspected of kidnapping Juliani was recovered last week.

"From the very beginning, we wanted to find little Juliani alive. That was our goal," Christianson said. But as the days progressed, "we just knew that wouldn't happen."

Investigators have not located the suspect, who is the ex-boyfriend of Juliani's mother, but they believe his body also will be found in the canal, Christianson said.

The man, 27-year-old Jose Rodriguez, is accused of taking Juliani from the boy's home in Patterson on Jan. 18. A homicide warrant has been issued for Rodriguez, Christianson said.

Search teams began combing the canal after a farmworker told authorities he saw a car matching the description of Rodriguez's silver Toyota Corolla going into the water shortly after the abduction.

Rodriguez's Corolla was pulled from the bottom of the canal Friday, with no signs of the boy or suspect inside. There was no evidence Rodriguez fled the scene after the car went into the water, Christianson said.

Rodriguez, who has an extensive criminal record that includes an involuntary manslaughter conviction, is accused of snatching Juliani from the arms of the boy's grandmother outside the family home. Authorities have not discussed a motive, but Juliani's mother, Tabitha Cardenas, has said she recently ended her three-year relationship with Rodriguez.

In Juliani's tight-knit neighborhood, where yellow and purple ribbons were pinned on trees, residents gathered after learning about the tragic discovery. Many of the parked vehicles still had "missing" fliers attached to their windows.

Police tape blocked access to the cul-de-sac where Juliani's family lives. Family members did not come outside to speak with reporters.

Patterson City Councilwoman Deborah Novelli, who visited the family Tuesday afternoon, said they were angry at Rodriguez and unable to understand why this happened.

"They are trying to understand: Where was his head? What was he thinking?" Novelli said, her eyes red from tears.

Darlene Vanderbilt, a neighbor who was home the day Juliani was kidnapped, recalled coming out of her house after she heard screams and seeing Rodriguez's car whipping down the street. She said the memory keeps replaying in her head.

"It just hurts. It brings it all back," said Vanderbilt, standing in her driveway a few doors down from Juliani's home. "We couldn't do anything more than what we did: call the police and get them looking for him."

Another neighbor, Suzie Ambers, described Juliani as a beautiful, sweet child who loved life.

"We were all praying and hoping it would turn out different," Ambers said. "But in our hearts, we knew."

Ambers said their focus now must shift to Tabitha Cardenas, who is eight months pregnant with Rodriguez's child. An ambulance was parked outside the family home Tuesday, in case the expectant mother needed to be taken to the hospital.

"We are with Tabitha," Ambers said. "The whole block is supporting her."

Strong cyclone bears down on north Australia coast

Strong cyclone bears down on north Australia coast

Chris Hinksman tapes a window to minimize flying glass at a friend's used car dealership in Cairns, Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011, in an effort to limit damage from the path of a monster storm bearing down on northeastern Australia. Cyclone Yasi is forecast to hit the coast late Wednesday or early Thursday with wind gusts up to 174 mph (280 kph) are expected.

CAIRNS, Australia (AP) -- Authorities implored thousands of Australians to gather their loved ones Wednesday and flee a monster cyclone that strengthened overnight and threatened to produce hours of terrifying winds and torrential rain for the northeast.

Gusts up to 186 mph (300 kph) were expected when Cyclone Yasi strikes late Wednesday night as a fierce Category 5 storm - the most severe threat level. The storm front is more than 310 miles (500 kilometers) wide and Yasi is so strong, it could reach far inland before it significantly loses power.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh urged people living in low-lying areas to get out quickly because roads and airports were within hours of closing.

"Do not bother to pack bags. Just grab each other and get to a place of safety. Remember that people are irreplaceable," she said.

Yasi was forecast to hit land at about 10 p.m. Wednesday (7 a.m. EST, 1200 GMT), the Bureau of Meteorology said.

The timing, just after high tide, meant high storm surges of at least 6.5 feet (two meters) were likely to flood significant areas along the coast.

"Yasi ... poses an extremely serious threat to life and property," the bureau warned, adding that the storm is likely to be "more life-threatening than any experienced in recent generations."

Bligh said residents in coastal areas should have left already as their region would undoubtedly flood. Those living further inland were told to "bunker down" in their homes and get ready for gale-force winds expected to hit within hours.

"We are facing a storm of catastrophic proportions in a highly populated area," Bligh said. "What it all adds up to is a very frightening time. We're looking at 24 hours of quite terrifying winds, torrential rain, likely loss of electricity and mobile phones. People really need to be preparing mentally if nothing else."

The storm is expected to make landfall between Cairns - a city of about 164,000 people and a gateway for visitors to the Great Barrier Reef - and Innisfail, a rural community about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south, which was devastated by Cyclone Larry in 2006. Larry destroyed thousands of homes and banana and sugar cane plantations. No one was killed.

The Cairns airport closed Wednesday after extra morning flights left. Tourists fled beach resorts ranging from backpacker hostels to exclusive clubs, and military flights ferried the ill and elderly from hospitals to safety farther south. About 9,500 people had taken cover at evacuation centers by Wednesday afternoon, Bligh said.

Police began ordering people off the streets of Cairns early Wednesday morning. "Everyone's gotta go now," one officer told pedestrians strolling near the waterfront. "The water is coming NOW."

Those who decided to weather the storm from their homes spent Wednesday morning taping up windows, stacking sandbags and trying to stay calm as the massive storm front edged closer.

"Just another day in paradise!" Andy Gates quipped as he strolled into a Cairns cafe packed with residents hurrying to grab breakfast before the winds forced them inside. The 50-year-old airport maintenance technician was planning to ride out the storm along with dozens of friends and family members at his home, a sturdy cinder block house that stands high on a hill.

Gates, like many Queenslanders, has lived through more than a few storms. But Yasi looked particularly ominous, he said.

"I normally don't get worried, but this one is going to be huge," he said. "I reckon there's going to be a lot of fatalities. They're all painting a pretty grim picture."

Cairns residents Jane Alcorn and Alan Buckingham filled a basket with food and trash bags at a grocery store buzzing with locals picking up last-minute essentials Wednesday morning. The couple said the winds would likely tear the roof off their apartment complex, but still planned to take shelter in their garage with other tenants.

Buckingham, who is from the U.K. and has never experienced a cyclone before, admitted he was having some trouble keeping his nerves in check.

"Where do you run to?" asked Buckingham, 48. "You can't run inland and outpace it. ... You gotta sit it out."

Alcorn, a 42-year-old veteran of Queensland storms, said she had already banned those sheltering with them from panicking during the storm.

"There's no crying, no hysterics," she said. "It's going to be loud, it's going to be scary. But we've got each other."

Forecasters said up to three feet (one meter) of rain could fall on some coastal communities. Many parts of Queensland state are already saturated from months of flooding, though the worst floods hit areas hundreds of miles (kilometers) farther south of the towns in the immediate path of Yasi. Still, Bligh said residents up and down the coast needed to prepare.

"It's such a big storm - it's a monster, killer storm - that it's not just about where this crosses the coast that is at risk," Bligh said.

Queensland has been in the grip of one of Australia's worst natural disasters for more than a month. Tropical deluges that began in November flooded an area greater than France and Germany combined, damaging or destroying some 30,000 homes and businesses and killing 35 people.

Large parts of Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city, were inundated for days. The government says the total cost to Australia is at least $5.6 billion.

Brisbane is about 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) south of Cairns on Australia's east coast.

Australia's huge, sparsely populated tropical north is battered each year by about six cyclones - called typhoons throughout much of Asia and hurricanes in the Western hemisphere. Building codes that have been strengthened since Cyclone Tracy devastated the city of Darwin in 1974 have left the region generally well-prepared.

Obama: Egypt's Mubarak must begin transition now

Obama: Egypt's Mubarak must begin transition now

President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Egypt in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama on Tuesday challenged Egypt's embattled autocratic ruler, a staunch U.S. ally, to immediately begin the process of transitioning the country to new leadership, a signal that there should be no drawn-out goodbye.

Earlier, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had announced he would not seek another term in office but also would not yield to growing demands to step down now. After a huddle at the White House, Obama went on television to respond.

In his brief statement at the White House, Obama invoked Egypt's ancient and storied past in what appeared to be an appeal to Mubarak's desire to be remembered well in history as a powerful leader and peacemaker. He said he had spoken to Mubarak to press his case for 30 minutes shortly after Mubarak addressed the Egyptian people.

"He recognizes that the status quo is not sustainable and that a change must take place," Obama said of Mubarak. "Indeed, all of us who are privileged to serve in position of political power do so at the will of our people."

"Through thousands of years, Egypt has known many moments of transformation; the voices of the Egyptian people tell us that this is one of the moments, this is one of those times," Obama said. He added that the United States heard those voices demanding change as anti-government protests filled the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian cities.

Mubarak delivered his speech after hearing from a special envoy, former U.S. ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner, whom Obama dispatched to Cairo on Monday. Wisner's message: The U.S. saw his tenure at an end, didn't want him to stand for re-election in September and wanted him to prepare an orderly transition to real democracy.

"It is my belief that an orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful and it must begin now," Obama said he had told Mubarak in the phone call.

That suggested Mubarak's concession was not enough, but Obama left the point dangling. He was careful not to say that Mubarak should have left immediately, and he stressed that it was not up to the United States to pick Egypt's leaders.

"Furthermore, the process must include a broad spectrum of Egyptian voices and opposition parties," he said. "It should lead to elections that are free and fair. And, it should result in a government that is not only grounded in democratic principles but is also responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people."

Obama praised the "passion and dignity" of the protesters who have rallied for Mubarak's departure as an "inspiration" to people around the world, and he hailed the Egyptian military for its poise in handling the situation.

"To the people of Egypt, particularly the young people of Egypt, I want to be clear: We hear your voices," Obama said. "I have an unyielding belief that you will determine your own destiny and seize the promise of a better future for your children and grandchildren."

In a half-way concession to hundreds of thousands of protesters, Mubarak said in Egypt that he would serve out the rest of his term working to ensure a "peaceful transfer of power" and new rules on presidential elections. His message that he would not immediately leave was rebuffed by many demonstrators in Cairo's main square.

Obama warned there would be "difficult days ahead" in Egypt as the situation develops and appealed for calm.

Tuesday's developments signaled that after a week of balancing support for protesters and for America's close ally of three decades, the administration had decided that long-term backing for the Egyptian president was no longer tenable.

They also coincided with a greater outreach to opposition figures, most notably opening talks with a possible Mubarak successor, Nobel peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, a former Egyptian diplomat and chief of the U.N. nuclear watchdog.

Officials said that in his conversation with Mubarak, Wisner did not demand that the president step down immediately but rather accept that he was nearing the end of his three-decade grip on power and not try to extend it. Wisner was instructed to use a "light touch" in conveying Obama's message, one official said.

Wisner and Mubarak are friends, and the officials said the two had a back-and-forth discussion in which each provided the other with his perspective on developments.

The officials said Obama was keenly aware of Mubarak's need to save face and make a graceful exit, acknowledging that the Egyptian leader has been a staunch ally and a major player in all Middle East peace efforts over the past 30 years. The administration hopes that other Arab allies will appreciate that approach, the officials said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to describe the behind-the-scenes diplomacy on the record.

On Capitol Hill, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said Mubarak must leave sooner than he plans because his government "has no credibility" to oversee a process toward democracy.

"His continued role in Egypt's transition is unrealistic," said Leahy, who sits on a Senate panel that oversees U.S. foreign aid, including some $1.5 billion per year that Egypt receives.

Meanwhile, the escalating anti-government protests led the State Department to order non-essential American personnel and their families to leave the country.

The department said it had flown about 1,600 Americans out of Egypt since Monday. It said Americans were struggling to reach Cairo's airport because roads were closed as a result of demonstrations. Some 60 U.S. citizens were expected to be flown out late Tuesday, with an additional 1,000 likely to be evacuated in coming days.

The Cairo airport is open and operating but the department warned that flights may be disrupted and that people should be prepared for lengthy waits. On Tuesday, it added Frankfurt, Germany, as a destination and the Egyptian cities of Aswan and Luxor as departure points.

Egypt crowds unmoved by Mubarak's vow not to run

Egypt crowds unmoved by Mubarak's vow not to run

An Egyptian woman chants anti-government slogans during a protest in Tahrir (Liberation) square, early Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced he will not run for a new term in September elections but rejected protesters' demands he step down immediately and leave the country, vowing to die on Egypt's soil, after a dramatic day in which a quarter-million Egyptians staged their biggest protest yet calling on him to go.

CAIRO (AP) -- President Hosni Mubarak defied a quarter-million protesters demanding he step down immediately, announcing Tuesday he would serve out the last months of his term and "die on Egyptian soil." He promised not to seek re-election, but that did not calm public fury as clashes erupted between his opponents and supporters.

The protesters, whose numbers multiplied more than tenfold in a single day Tuesday for their biggest rally yet, have insisted they will not end their unprecedented week-old wave of unrest until their ruler for nearly three decades goes.

Mubarak's halfway concession - an end to his rule seven months down the road - threatened to inflame frustration and anger among protesters, who have been peaceful in recent days.

In the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, clashes erupted between several hundred protesters and government supporters soon afterward, according to footage by Al-Jazeera television. The protesters threw stones at their rivals, who wielded knives and sticks, until soldiers fired in the air and stepped in between them, said a local journalist, Hossam el-Wakil.

The speech was immediately derided by protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Watching on a giant TV, protesters booed and waved their shoes over their heads at his image in a sign of contempt. "Go, go, go! We are not leaving until he leaves," they chanted. One man screamed, "He doesn't want to say it, he doesn't want to say it."

In the 10-minute address, the 82-year-old Mubarak appeared somber but spoke firmly and without an air of defeat. He insisted that even if the protests had never happened, he would not have sought a sixth term in September.

He said he would serve out the rest of his term working "to accomplish the necessary steps for the peaceful transfer of power." He said he will carry out amendments to rules on presidential elections.

Mubarak, a former air force commander, vowed not to flee the country. "This is my dear homeland ... I have lived in it, I fought for it and defended its soil, sovereignty and interests. On its soil I will die. History will judge me and all of us."

The step came after heavy pressure from his top ally, the United States. Soon after Mubarak's address, President Barack Obama said at the White House that he had spoken with Mubarak and "he recognizes that the status quo is not sustainable and a change must take place." Obama said he told Mubarak that an orderly transition must be meaningful and peaceful, must begin now and must include opposition parties.

Earlier, a visiting Obama envoy - former ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner, who is a friend of the Egyptian president - met with Mubarak and made clear to him that it is the U.S. "view that his tenure as president is coming to a close," according to an administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the delicacy of the ongoing diplomacy.

The United States has been struggling to find a way to ease Mubarak out of office while maintaining stability in Egypt, a key ally in the Mideast that has a 30-year-old peace treaty with Israel and has been a bulwark against Islamic militancy.

Mubarak would be the second Arab leader pushed from office by a popular uprising in the history of the modern Middle East, following the ouster last month of the president of Tunisia - another North African nation.

The U.S. ambassador in Cairo, Margaret Scobey, spoke by telephone Tuesday with Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, the embassy said. ElBaradei, a pro-democracy advocate and one of the opposition's most prominent leaders, has taken a key role in formulating the movement's demands. He is also a member of a new committee formed by various factions to conduct any future negotiations on the protesters' behalf once Mubarak steps down.

There was no immediate word on what he and Scobey discussed.

Only a month ago, reform activists would have greeted Mubarak's announcement with joy - many Egyptians believed Mubarak was going to run again despite health issues. But after the past week of upheaval, Mubarak's address struck many of his opponents as inadequate.

"The people have spoken. They said no to Mubarak, and they will not go back on their words," said Saad el-Katatni, a leading member of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood. "Enough suffering. Let him go, and leave the Egyptians to sort themselves out."

Ayman Nour, a former presidential candidate who is a member of the negotiating committee, said Mubarak clearly didn't get the message.

"This is a unique case of stubbornness that will end in a disaster," he said. "It is only expected that he wasn't going to run because of his age.... He offered nothing new."

Tuesday's protest marked a dramatic escalation that organizers said aims to drive Mubarak out by Friday, with more than 250,000 people flooding into Tahrir, or Liberation, Square.

Protesters jammed in shoulder to shoulder: farmers and unemployed university graduates, women in conservative headscarves and women in high heels, men in suits and working-class men in scuffed shoes. Many in the crowd traveled from rural provinces, defying a government transportation shutdown and roadblocks on intercity highways.

They sang nationalist songs, danced, beat drums and chanted the anti-Mubarak slogan "Leave! Leave! Leave!" as military helicopters buzzed overhead. Similar demonstrations erupted in at least five other cities around Egypt.

Soldiers at checkpoints set up at the entrances of the square did nothing to stop the crowds from entering. The military promised on state TV Monday night that it would not fire on protesters answering a call for a million to demonstrate, a sign that army support for Mubarak may be unraveling.

The movement to drive Mubarak out has been built on the work of online activists and fueled by deep frustration with an autocratic regime blamed for ignoring the needs of the poor and allowing corruption and official abuse to run rampant. After years of tight state control, protesters emboldened by the Tunisia unrest took to the streets on Jan. 25 and mounted a once-unimaginable series of protests across this nation of 80 million.

The repercussions were being felt around the Mideast, as other authoritarian governments fearing popular discontent pre-emptively tried to burnish their democratic image.

Jordan's King Abdullah II fired his government Tuesday in the face of smaller street protests, named an ex-prime minister to form a new Cabinet and ordered him to launch political reforms. The Palestinian Cabinet in the West Bank said it would hold long-promised municipal elections "as soon as possible."

Egypt's protesters have rejected earlier concessions by Mubarak, including the dissolution of his government, the naming of a new one and the appointment of a vice president, Omar Suleiman, who offered a dialogue with "political forces" over constitutional and legislative reforms.

In an interview with Al-Arabiya television Tuesday, ElBaradei dismissed Suleiman's offer, saying there could be no negotiations until Mubarak leaves. In his speech, Mubarak said the offer still stands and promised to change constitutional articles that allow the president unlimited terms and limit those who can run for the office.

Egypt's state TV on Tuesday ran a statement by the new prime minister, Ahmed Shafiq, pleading with the public to "give a chance" to his government.

The United States ordered nonessential U.S. government personnel and their families to leave Egypt. They join a wave of people rushing to flee the country - over 18,000 overwhelmed Cairo's international airport and threw it into chaos. EgyptAir staff scuffled with frantic passengers, food supplies were dwindling and some policemen even demanded substantial bribes before allowing foreigners to board their planes.

Banks, schools and the stock market in Cairo were closed for the third working day, making cash tight. Bread prices spiraled. An unprecedented shutdown of the Internet was in its fifth day.

The official death toll from the crisis stood at 97, with thousands injured, though reports from witnesses across the country indicated the actual toll was far higher.

But perhaps most startling was how peaceful the protests have been in recent days, after the military replaced the police around Tahrir Square and made no move to try to suppress the demonstrations. No clashes between the military and protesters have been reported since Friday night, after pitched street battles with the police throughout the day Friday.

Egypt's military leadership has reassured the U.S. that they do not intend to crack down on demonstrators, but instead they are allowing the protesters to "wear themselves out," according to a former U.S. official in contact with several top Egyptian army officers. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

Troops alongside Soviet-era and newer U.S.-made Abrams tanks stood guard at roads leading into Tahrir Square. Protester volunteers wearing tags reading "the People's Security" circulated through the crowds in the square, saying they were watching for government infiltrators who might try to instigate violence. Organizers said the protest would remain in the square and not attempt to march to the presidential palace to avoid frictions with the military.

Two effigies of Mubarak dangled from traffic lights. On their chests was written: "We want to put the murderous president on trial." Their faces were scrawled with the Star of David, an allusion to many protesters' feeling that Mubarak is a friend of Israel, still seen by most Egyptians as their country's archenemy more than 30 years after the two nations signed a peace treaty.

Every protester had their own story of why they came - with a shared theme of frustration with a life pinned in by corruption, low wages, crushed opportunities and abuse by authorities. Under Mubarak, Egypt has seen a widening gap between rich and poor, with 40 percent of the population living under or just above the poverty line set by the World Bank at $2 a day.

Sahar Ahmad, a 41-year-old school teacher and mother of one, said she has taught for 22 years and still only makes about $70 a month.

"There are 120 students in my classroom. That's more than any teacher can handle," said Ahmad. "Change would mean a better education system I can teach in and one that guarantees my students a good life after school. If there is democracy in my country, then I can ask for democracy in my own home."

Tamer Adly, a driver of one of the thousands of minibuses that ferry commuters around Cairo, said he was sick of the daily humiliation he felt from police who demand free rides and send him on petty errands, reflecting the widespread public anger at police high-handedness.

"They would force me to share my breakfast with them ... force me to go fetch them a newspaper. This country should not just be about one person," the 30-year-old lamented, referring to Mubarak.

Among the older protesters, there was also a sense of amazement after three decades of unquestioned control by Mubarak's security forces over the streets.

"We could never say no to Mubarak when we were young, but our young people today proved that they can say no, and I'm here to support them," said Yusra Mahmoud, a 46-year-old school principal who said she had been sleeping in the square alongside other protesters for the past two nights.

Authorities shut down all roads and public transportation to Cairo and in and out of other main cities, security officials said. Train services nationwide were suspended for a second day and all bus services between cities were halted.

Still, many from the provinces managed to make it to the square. Hamada Massoud, a 32-year-old lawyer, said he and 50 others came in cars and minibuses from the impoverished province of Beni Sweif south of Cairo.

"Cairo today is all of Egypt," he said. "I want my son to have a better life and not suffer as much as I did ... I want to feel like I chose my president."