joining us now live from cairo, cnn international correspondent ben wedeman. in chicago, ann marie slaughter. ben, the collapse of the truth. what does it say about the uneasy relationship between the egyptian army and the police? >> the egyptian army is really sort of trying to distance itself from the police. and this is because despite all of the unhappiness with the supreme council of the armed forces that runs egypt, the soldiers, the ordinary soldiers in the street, still get respect. they're not attacked by the protesters, whereas the ministry of the interior and its forces are profoundly hated by egyptians. i've driven by the interior ministry, and the old days of hosni mubarak the, egyptians would say, you go in that building, you may never come out again. and what we're seeing is that -- a realization that this is a painted ministry. so, for instance, we heard from the grand of the republic of egypt, hamad ahmed tiab. actually calling on the interior ministry to stop shooting egyptians. and that sort of statement from the most senior religious author

our senior international correspondent ben wedeman is in cairo right now. ben, why the fighting now in the streets and why are these crowds massing in tahrir square again? >> what you see really, ted, this is a manifestation of the growing frustration and anger against the supreme council for the armed forces. that's the group that took over from hosni mubarak when he resigned on the 11th of february. the feeling is that they're not moving quickly enough to civilian rule, that they may harbor ambitions to hold on to power for the foreseeable future. another element is that these clashes began yesterday, when the police were trying to clear a fairly small number of people out of tahrir square, but they used fairly excessive force yesterday. one man was killed in cairo, more than a thousand wounded. this is really -- sparked more outrage because, of course, egyptians overthrew hosni mubarak's regime because they felt that the police had too much power, was too brutal, arbitrarily tortured and detained people. this is really a reaction to that. they don't want

ben wedeman finds out. >> reporter: huge cranes lift the containers from a ship's belly. this goes on around the clock. 365 days a year. morocco's spanking new port has been in operation for only four years, an ambitious project to put this country squarely on the global shipping map. it sits on the straits of gibraltar. it opened in 2007, despite the global economic downward, business has gone in only one direction -- up. most of the merchandise that passes through here is bound for europe, africa. more 2 million containers have passed through in the last year. each is individually from the ship to the storage area to another ship. executives from international shipping companies that have set up shop here, say that the moroccan government has cut through red tape to make the port success. >> we have found out through working that morocco is a good model for global business. we have been pleased working with leaders at all levels of the government. that are business-minded leaders. they understand the key drivers of global business. >> reporter: but it's not just about g

let's begin in cairo with cnn senior international correspondent ben wedeman. ben, you've been covering the pro military rally there. can you compare for me in terms of numbers and demonstrators that rally to what we've been seeing in tahrir square since saturday? >>> that pro military rally was maybe one-tenth as many people as are here at the moment. but they say they represent the silent majority. now they want their voices heard. they've watched tahrir become a political stage, and with so many groups coming out and calling for the military to tep down, other demonstrators are trying to reach the interior ministry. they say the army and this police are the two main pillars. they say the place to determine in the future is not in the streets and in the squares. the elections are due to begin on monday. >> can you give me a quick update on the three american students? the release is ordered, but they're still being detained. >> reporter: the release was orded yesterday, and we are hearing they've now been released and they're on the way to the airport to soon

back to you. >> ben, thank you very much. ben wedeman joining us from the polling station in cairo. charles, it's interesting because the islamist group, the muslim brotherhood looks like it's favored to get a favorable seat in parliament. the question becomes will it mean anything because the protesters say the military will remain in charge no matter what happens. certainly that's going to be an issue for all egyptians to consider as this goes forward. we've got months of this. >> absolutely. and definitely one to watch because the elections there are not only important for social stability and clearly the happiness of egyptians, but also vital to the country's economic future. egypt is one of the sive vits nations. they rank behind the bric countries in terms of economic potential. but for egypt to meet its future, it needs leader to tackle the problems. own going political unrest has sent tourism revenues and foreign investment tumble. the credit rating was cut to brks plus amid egyptian bond yields reaching new highs. lack of confidence is also high. the egx is down 47% for the

wedeman on the phone with us, thank you very much, ben. we'll talk to you as the morning progresses. >>> still ahead planning to work or shop. how about both? if you are like moses you'll make it cybermonday at work. >>> the faa is one step closer for clearing drone aircraft to be used in a neighborhood near you. this is your "wake-up call." whoa. how do you top great vacations? whoa. getting twice the points on great vacations. whoa! use chase sapphire preferred and now get two times the points on travel, and two times the points on dining and no foreign transaction fees. whoa! chase sapphire preferred. a card of a different color. apply now at chasesapphire.com/preferred fantastic! [ man ] pro-gresso they fit! okay-y... okay??? i've been eating progresso and now my favorite old jeans...fit. okay is there a woman i can talk to? [ male announcer ] progresso. 40 soups 100 calories or less. [ electronic beeping ] [ male announcer ] still getting dandruff? neutrogena® t/gel shampoo defeats dandruff after just one use. t/gel shampoo. it works

ben wedeman reports from cairo. >> reporter: much am changed in egypt in the last ten months but sunday in cairo was a day of deja vu. running street battles between protesters and security forces in a growing revolt against the supreme council of the armed forces which took over from hosni mubarak last february. tear gas and rocks flew fast and furious. security forces fired upon protesters with hard rubber pellets like these. this is with the police of egypt are using against us, she says. they're killing the youth of egypt, shooting them in the eyes. i tell her, we were here on january 25th. it was the same scene. what has changed? nothing has changed, she responds. we've gone backwards. the military council is garbage. mubarak is still alive and well and the people are dying. shouts this man, mubarak is running the military council and the whole country from prison. mubarak and all the corrupt businessmen around him. motorbikes rushed wounded to a makeshift field hospital, the same one that treated those injured during the uprising of mubarak. to protesters the new military rulers l

ben wedeman has this report. >> the protesters in tahrir square continue to ratchet up their pressure on the military council that runs egypt calling for them to step down and hand over two civilians on sunday, they're planning yet another million man protest to press their demand. at the same time, muhammad el bear die, the former head of the international atomic energy agency has come out and said he's willing to relinquish his bid for the presidency if he is asked to be as prime minister in a national salvation government. this happened after he met today with the members of the military council who are clearly trying to bridge the gap between the demands of the people in tahrir square and what they can actually offer. the military has expressed no intention to step down in response to the calls from tahrir square. in the meantime, egyptians are preparing for the first round in a long series of rounds of presidential elections to begin on monday. they've already been extended from monday to also tuesday, as well. much tension in this country as it prepares for the first elections s

joining us to talk about this from cairo, ben wedeman and egyptian protester khalid abdullah. he was the lead actor in the movie "kite runner" if you recognize him. and anne slaughter at the u.s. state department. ben, first of all, we saw some just frightening video, tough to watch. what is the latest on the situation there tonight? >> well, we still have the thousands of people in tahrir square and clashes still ongoing on the main road leading to the interior ministry. and i think it's important to keep in mind that really a lot of the anger is focused on the interior ministry. it's the symbol for many egyptians of the kind of police brutality they revolted against on the 25th of january, and they're revolting against yet again today. and it's important to keep in mind, sanjay that this is not the first time that the military and the security forces have been unleashed upon the population since mubarak was overthrown back in october. 26 people, most of them coptic christians, just in the streets below us here were killed in -- when the military drove in some instances armor

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well, ben wedeman, thank you very much. reporting from cairo. as i remember even in the heart of the revolution, a block or two away from tahrir square, there were shopkeepers frustrated by the inability to try to make a living. >>> president barack obama is stuck in the 40s, we're not talking about the decade, his overall approval numbers. they've lingered there since mid june. and that's where he's staying at least for now. 44% say he's doing a good job and approve of him. when it comes to white collar blue democrats, the president has taken a big hit. cnn poll numbers show 50% don't want to see him on the ticket next year. that is a 24 percentage point drop since the question was asked back in october. what does it mean for the president as election season heats up? it's a stunning number. and fresh off the debate last night. well, who is he going to be running against? there's been big changes on that that today. david gergen joins us. jamal, let me start with you and ask you about that precipitous drop among white blue collar democrats. how

joining us to talk about this from cairo, senior cnn correspondent ben wedeman and egyptian protester khalid abdalla. he was the lead actor in the movie "kite runner" if you recognize him. and anne-marie slaughter at the u.s. state department. ben, first of all, we saw some just frightening video, tough to watch. what is the latest on the situation there tonight? >> well, we still have the thousands of people in tahrir square and clashes still ongoing on the main road leading to the interior ministry. and i think it's important to keep in mind that really a lot of the anger is focused on the interior ministry. it's the symbol for many egyptians of the kind of police brutality they revolted against on the 25th of january, and they're revolting against yet again today. and it's important to keep in mind, sanjay that this is not the first time that the military and the security forces have been unleashed upon the population since mubarak was overthrown back in october. 26 people, most of them coptic christians, just in the streets below us here were killed in -- when the military drove i

our senior international correspondent ben wedeman live for us. among the developments, egypt calling into a broadcast network urging an end to the violence and urging police to stop firing. any into the violence in sight? >> reporter: if you can hear the ambulance in the background, that would indicate there's still fighting going on in the streets off of tahrir square. tahrir square itself is fairly i wouldn't say quiet but calm at the moment. i think to put this call in context, he is the senior islamic judicial figure in the country. in the days of mubarak, if he were to criticize the government, criticize the interior ministry, he would very quickly be out of a job. so this is an indication of the new environment in this country where senior public figures are highly critical of the government, of the interior ministry, which of course many people are blaming for many deaths and injuries taken place here since saturday. >> and, ben, the next new development we will watch to see a test of the transition, the parliament si elections scheduled f

cnn's ben wedeman reports from cairo tonight. >> reporter: it is deja vu in tahrir square. protesters and security forces have been facing off for well over 24 hours in a clash -- in clashes and protests very much focused on the supreme council of the armed forces. the group of military officers who took over from hosni mubarak on february 11th. now the protesters want the military to go back to the barracks to get out of the business of politics and to hand over the country to civilians. now we are only eight days away from egypt's first post-mubarak elections. and already there's lots of tensions, lots of expectations around the country for what these elections might bring. now the supreme council of the armed forces and the government have said that those elections will go ahead as scheduled. but that's just the beginning of a very long process. they begin on the 28th of november, but they will continue in other parts of the country through march of next year. at which point egyptians are hoping they will have some stability, some certainty as to where this country is go

our senior correspondent, ben wedeman is there. they are throwing rocks, setting fires, police firing tear gas. what's going on? you're there. what's going on that we can't see? >> reporter: well, what we can't see, because we're overlooking tahir square where there are tens and thousands of people out here. some of them making speeches, some of them chanting. you may be able to hear the ambulance in the background. there is a street battle going on a few hundred yards to the east of the square. now, earlier this evening -- or rather this afternoon, there was a truce. religious leaders came and somehow worked out a truce whereby the protesters and the police would stop throwing rocks at one another. the police would stop firing tear gas. and the army intervened right in the middle and we were with them. the army kept the police back on the one side and the protesters on the other and for about three hours there was a lot of chanting, lots of shouting. the protesters taunting the police. but there were no rocks thrown, nobody fired

well, ben wedeman, thank you very much. reporting from cairo. as i remember even in the heart of the revolution, a block or two away from tahrir square, there were shopkeepers frustrated by the inability to try to make a living. >>> president barack obama is stuck in the 40s, we're not talking about the decade, his overall approval numbers. they've lingered there since mid june. and a new cnn poll out today shows that's where he's staying, at least for now. 44% say he's doing a good job and approve of him. when it comes to white collar blue democrats, the president has taken a big hit. let's show you this. cnn poll numbers show 50% don't want to see him on the ticket next year. that is a 24 percentage point drop since the question was asked back in october. what does it mean for the president as election season heats up? it's a stunning number. and fresh off the debate last night. well, who is he going to be running against? there's been big changes on that that today. david gergen joins us. our senior political analyst. jamal, let me start with

well, ben wedeman, thank you very much. reporting from cairo. as i remember even in the heart of the revolution, a block or two away from tahrir square, there were shopkeepers frustrated by the inability to try to make a living. >>> president barack obama is stuck in the 40s, we're not talking about the decade, his overall approval numbers. they've lingered there since mid june. and a new cnn poll out today shows that's where he's staying, at least for now. 44% say he's doing a good job and approve of him. when it comes to white collar blue democrats, the president has taken a big hit. let's show you this. cnn poll numbers show 50% don't want to see him on the ticket next year. that is a 24 percentage point drop since the question was asked back in october. what does it mean for the president as election season heats up? it's a stunning number. and fresh off the debate last night. well, who is he going to be running against? there's been big changes on that that today. david gergen joins us. our senior political analyst. jamal, let me start with

i'm ben wedeman, cnn, reporting from cairo. >>> syrian activists say the relentless crackdown by the government there claimed 29 lives today. among that number, four children. this campaign against protesters led arab league finance ministers to call for sanctions today against syria. new video on youtube showed enthusiastic demonstrations in the city of homs with syrians pledging with the league to hit the regime hard. the sanctions would freeze assets belonging to the government and syrian officials. travel restrictions would be enforced as well. sunday morning foreign ministers will decide whether to accept the decision to enforce those sanctions. >>> a developing story in ohio. is a killer getting his victims from craigslist? also, four victims have been identified and three of them are dead. police are wondering, could there be more? >>> and marching bands at historically black colleges. they're almost as famous as the institutions themselves. but the death of a drum major at florida a&m could cause fallout beyond that campus. those stories coming up in two minutes. stay with us

ben wedeman in cairo for us. >>> now, three u.s. students in cairo have been arrested for throwing cocktails during protests. greg porter, a 19-year-old from drexler university, luke gates, from indiana university, and derek sweeny, a 19-year-old who attends georgetown. he is the tallest young man there at the far right of your screen. his mother, joyce sweeny, is on the phone with us in jefferson city, missouri. joy, just bring me up to speed and tell me what you know about your son. >> well, all we know is that he's accused of doing what you said but i just really find it very difficult to believe. first of all, you know, we have had an outpouring of support from all of his friends and family and we are to grateful. you know, he has always been somebody who believes in democracy and standing up for what you believe in and i know that he was excited at the opportunity to be in egypt right now. i also know that he is extreme passivist. he has always, even since he was a young child, supported peaceful resolution and would never do a

our ben wedeman just reporting there a few moments ago. another 1,700 wounded in the violence that started over the weekend. protesters are demanding the country's military rulers quickly transfer power to a civilian government. >>> the university of california davis in an uproar after occupy protesters are pepper sprayed. look at this. the campus police chief has been put on administrative leave along with two other officers while a task force investigates. students are planning a rally two hours from now and the university chancellor says she will be there. >>>. penn state has brought in former fbi director louis freeh to conduct independent investigations. freeh pledged a thorough and independent investigation into the sex scandal. >> i am committed to ensuring that our independent investigation be conducted in a thorough, fair, comprehensive manner leaving no stone unturned and without any fear or favor. we will examine all the relevant evidence, records, information, and circumstances. we will attempt to interview all necessary and ap

ben wedeman in cairo. these scenes looked familiar from several months back. why are protesters again back in tahrir square? >> reporter: yeah, it really is like old days. in fact, this cairo newspaper says flashback, blood, fire, and tears in tahrir. what they're protesting is the scoff -- the supreme council of the armed forces which took over from deposed president hosni mubarak on the 11th of february. many people increasing ly impatient. they feel it's time for generals to go back to the barracks, angry at police brutality. almost 1,000 wounded. one dead in cairo, one dead in alexandria. we're just eight days away from egypt's first democratic election, post the fall of hosni mubarak. and of course, the military rulers are increasingly nervous about the possibility of violence during the elections. but they're really stuck between a horock and a hard place. the elections could be violent. on the other hand, if they cancel them out of fear of violence, there could be more violence. this is really a vivid display of this newfound egyptian freedom. a desire

a foreign journalist, our ben wedeman is in cairo. ben, first of all, what does this new move mean of arab league for the president of syria? >> reporter: it certainly means in a sense he's been thrown under the bus by the arab league. they're ejecting syria, at least temporarily from the arab league unless it implements this action plan. the arab league came up with on the 2nd of november, which involves releasing prisoners, getting syrian troops off the streets of towns and cities and opening up a dialogue with the opposition. the syrian tv last night did say they released 1,180 prisoners. the opposition says it's a drop in the bucket. and the arab league is indicating it's simply not enough. the level of bloodshed has reached a level they must act and they must act now. of course, it's somewhat ironic given that in february of 1982, the father of assad, his troops killed well over 1,000 people in an uprising. but back then the arab league didn't say anything. so this shows you how much the arab spring, so to speak, has shaken all o

i want to bring in ben wedeman who has been covering this pro-military rally today. ben, if you can, compare this for me. compare the pro-military rally to what we've been seeing, the masses in tahrir square. >> reporter: look, there were many fewer people at the demonstration. nonetheless, it was fairly impressive that somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000 people came out to express their support for the military. they say they are the silent majority, and they have watched thousand since last saturday as the world has been transfixed by the drama here in tahrir square. now they want egypt to hear their voice. they're worried about the economy. law and order. the future of the country at the the time when everybody takes the their grievances to the street. the people at the pro-government rally. they plan to go on monday. go ahead as scheduled. they say it shouldn't be up to the crowds in tahrir to decide the fate of this country. they say people go to the ballot box and vote for the candidate of their choice. it should be the really deciding factor. brooke? >> quickl