Ngaire, I agree completely - we hope all of our Egyptian hosts are riding out these disruptions in safety.

The reports talk about tens of thousands of people in the streets. Given the population of Cairo, that's not a huge number of people. I take little comfort that the minister of intelligence is named the vice president.

BBC reports this morning included the following information:

"Despite an impromptu guard made up of volunteers, at least two looters managed to get into Cairo's museum of antiquities, damaging some of the exhibits.

"They were able, these two people to enter the Cairo museum from the [roof] and they destroyed two mummies and they opened one case," said Zahi Hawass, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities."

We were in Cairo on election day a few years ago. Traffic was a mess as open trucks were stuffed with people being driven to the polls, many waving huge signs. Mubarek won with something like 98% of the vote in this 'free' election. He's unlikely to give up without a huge fight.

Cheers, Anne