have a good night! hope to see you tomorrow! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ this morning on "early today," turning point. protests in egypt's capital turn deadly as waves of mubarak supporters clash with anti-government protesters. whiteout, states from new mexico to maine, dig out after one of the biggest blizzards in decades. and vast discovery, a nasa telescope spots dozens of new planets which astronomers say telescope spots dozens of new planets which astronomers say could support life. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. i'm lynn berry. welcome to our viewers across the nation including the pacific time zone. today we begin with a dramatic

turn of events. just when it seemed the situation in egypt had calmed, yesterday there was a sudden and deadly outbreak of violence in cairo as anti-government protesters came under attack. the egyptian government confirmed on state tv, the overnight clashes left five people dead and 836 people wounded. nbc news chief foreign affairs correspondent richard engle filed this report late last night from cairo. >> egypt ordered a crackdown against anti-government demonstrators, but not with troops, tanks or uniformed police. instead, it sent in goon squads disguised as supporters of president mubarak. it was immediately clear, these were not demonstrators. thousands of mubarak supporters charged into cairo's tahrir square. the protesters, unarmed, were caught off guard by the surprise attack. the pro mubarak demonstrators rushed the protesters on horseback and with camels.

the protesters fought back, ripping mubarak supporters out of their saddles. the government claims it didn't send any mobs to attack the protesters who want mubarak to leave the country. but that seems implausible and the protesters don't believe it. the mubarak supporters arrived in coordinated groups and seemed to have a single mission to attack. by nightfall, they were using military-style tactics to seal off tahrir square. president mubarak may have signaled the crackdown. in a televised speech, he said egyptians had to choose between chaos and stability. mubarak's choice was clear, a crackdown disguised as a counterprotest. president mubarak said he would rather die than leave egypt. tonight protest leaders we spoke to in the middle of the battle in tahrir told us the same, they would rather die than surrender. richard engel, nbc news, cairo. at this hour the situation has somewhat, thanks in large

part to the egyptian army taking an active role in preventing violence trying to keep the opposing factions apart. ron allen filed this report. >> reporter: well, it seems that the government is trying to stop the violence in the central square now. the army has positioned itself between the two opposing camps of pro and anti-government protesters. after standing by yesterday and after some would argue inciting some of the violence, the government seems to be trying to clamp down on this and trying to stop it today. we still have about five or six hours until the curfew comes on, when things tend to calm down a little bit, but again, every day is so unpredictable. there are still, i would say, thousands of people milling in or near the central square in cairo. there's still a lot of tension. people are still trying to organize marches and both sides are still angry and unsatisfied with where the situation is

right now. so there is every possibility of more clashes. there has been more fighting this morning, it's been small scale, certainly nothing of the the magnitude that we saw yesterday, but again the day is young and we'll have to see how it goes. >> thanks to ron allen. back at home, the republican led push to repeal the nation's year old health care reform law, was, as expected, struck down in the senate yesterday. democrats defeated republicans in a 51-47 vote along party lines. a majority of senators did, however, agree to strip the law of an unpopular paperwork requirement for small businesses. but the battle is not over yet. recent rulings by two federal judges that said portions of the new law are unconstitutional will likely land in the supreme court. now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. in chicago, the blizzard of 2011 made sure the city lived up to its windy reputation. the storm produced 67-mile-per-hour wind gusts. 20 plus inches of snow caused

hundreds of drivers to abandon their cars, turning lakeshore drive into a virtual parking lot. the combination of high winds and heavy snow also proved to be deadly. at least seven chicago-area deaths are being blamed on the storm out of a total of 12 throughout the country. in massachusetts, a month of snow accumulation took its toll on a building in easton. employees made a run for it after they began to see the ceiling tiles fall and the building began to give way. fortunately everyone made it out before the structure came crashing down. finally, to connecticut fire fighters rushed to save 14 horses after heavy snow caused a barn roof to collapse. it took over four hours but a rescue team of volunteers, vets and fire fighters were able to safely remove the animals. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, good morning. talk about a relief that this is all over, but you've got more business going on.

>> also's no relief, lynn. let's face the fact. it's ugly, one of the most incredible winters we've had in decades, blizzard goes by and in its place some of the coldest air we've seen in many southern locations in a long time. phoenix, arizona, only 44 degrees for a high yesterday. that was the coldest daytime high they've ever had in february. this morning, we have temperatures of 5 in albuquerque, negative numbers in new mexico and some of that cold air is bleeding through the mountainous areas of the rockies too. we're not being spared in many locations. salt lake city, it's 12, vegas is 29. we're at 41 in l.a., 29 in medford. along the coastal areas we're okay but the cold air made it right through the rockies. amazing how chilly of an air mass this is. in the pacific northwest that's where the exception is. the jet stream starting to dip down, that's why we have rain back in the forecast around seattle. it's mild, at least. temperatures are in the upper 40s. even with sunshine today, we're only going to be 49 in phoenix.

very rare for this time of year for that to happen. that's a quick look at your thursday forecast. one of the best forecasts in the country, 71 and sunny. friday forecast, lynn, is coming up and let's turn up the heat a little bit. >> why not? thanks, bill. also coming up jobs rise, earnings shine, but wall street is flat. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus on the alleged lindsay lohan jewelry heist. coming up -- one celebrity brings a fan to tears at the knicks game. i have two words for you, goalie fight. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome

back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. the most powerful storm to hit australia ripped across the coast leaving several thousand people homeless. authorities say they're surprised no one has been killed in the reported cyclone although some communities are still cut off by floodwaters. former defense secretary donald rumsfeld reportedly concludes in his new autobiography the war in iraq has been worth the cost, according to the "washington post" which says rumsfeld remains largely unapologetic about his handling of the conflict. nasa says one of its orbiting telescope has found more than 50 planets outside our solar system that could possibly sustain life, meaning they're not too hot or too cold. those candidates are also just a fraction of the more than 1200 possible planets spotted by the telescope in just over a year. archeologists in israel have uncovered a 1500 year old church

southwest of jerusalem with an unusually well preserved mosaic floor. the byzantine church will be visible for one more week before experts cover it once again for its own protection. here's an early look at your health headlines on msnbc.com. the associated press reports later today, the obama administration will announce the first drinking water standard for a toxic rocket fuel ingredient linked to thyroid problems in pregnant women and young children. 153 water sources in 26 states contain the chemical which is also used in fireworks and explosives. with contamination most likely caused by improper disposal at test sites, military bases and chemical plants. for more information on this and health stories check out the health page at msnbc.com. >> early today health is brought to you by the vagisil screening kit. a look at how wall street will kick off the day.

the dow opens at 12,4 1 after nudging up one point yesterday. the s&p shed three points. the nasdaq dipped one. a look at overseas trading in tokyo the nikkei dropped 26 points, but in hong kong the hang sang soared 426. stocks traded in tight range wednesday as unrest in egypt kept investors from making any big bets. traders who braved yesterday's brutal storm mostly played it safe despite a report from adp that u.s. companies added more workers than expected last month. oil supply fears sparked by more clashes in egypt were offset by news of rising u.s. fuel supplies. video game publisher electronic arts was the s&p's big winner, jumping 16%, thanks to upbeat earnings. time warner rose nearly 9% on a 22% boost in fourth-quarter profits. healthy holiday sales of barbie and fisher-price push mattel 1% higher.

appliance giant whirl pool lost 2% on news it's raising prices to keep up with rising costs of raw materials. after the bell, visa shares slipped despite better than expected earnings. fast food chain parent yum brands got a boost from its afterhours report card thanks to robust growth overseas. elsewhere after the bell, news corp reported strong ad sales helped double its quarterly earnings. if the price sounds too good to be true, it probably is. police say the alleged ring leader of a high-tech theft ring was indicted tuesday for a scam he started from his jail cell using phony credit cards to resell more than $1 million of apple electronics at a discount. the cavs lose again. a hockey fan's favorite kind of fight and we may have lost paul the octopus but there's always jenny the elephant. plus, the knicks may be up and coming, but last night, the mavericks took them to school. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead.

the blizzard is gone, but the cold air remains. your thursday forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, new york's knicks are much improved this season. but last night, dallas showed them they have a long way to go

before they can hang with the mavericks. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good thursday morning. you know a knicks game at madison square garden can be a who's who in hollywood. but it's not every day a celebrity can make a fan cry unless, of course, it's justin bieber. the young fan couldn't hold back the tears. when she got a glimpse of bieber sitting courtside. it will strike in the most unlikely of places. the mavs nowitzki gave them the reason to cry, 26 points, eighth double double of the year. mavs won 113-97. cavaliers move one step closer to a record they want no part of. cav leaves move one step close to a record they want no part of. darren hit a three in the final minutes, they won it, 117-112. the parody in college basketball continues. syracuse knocked off seventh ranked uconn. joseph put it away. the bucket, the foul. syracuse ends a four-game skid 66-58. wild scene in hockey during the

islanders/penguins game. goalie rick dipietro leveled matt cooke and brent johnson wasn't having that at all. he skated the length of the ice, to fight dipietro. off came the gloves and johnson unloaded, knocked him out with one punch. he could have got in more but the damage was done. it meriwether won't fight pack no, maybe johnson will. remember paul the octopus who predicted eight world cup games including the final last summer. paul move over, here she comes, jenny the elephant from the dallas zoo who made her super bowl prediction yesterday. jenny had to two from two watermelons with the two painted colors. the steelers, which is a bad thing for pittsburgh, smashed the watermelon meaning the packers will win the super ball. the pachyderm picked the packers. say that five times.

i'm fred roggin. coming up, she hasn't, she has, she hasn't. nicole kidman's latest admission on plastic surgery. your entertainment headlines are straight ahead. to most, this missouri scene represents mother nature's misery, but to one man, it's actually a chance to live a dream. you're watching "early today."

welcome back.

we don't have any rain or snow to talk about, but for the most part just cold air continuing to move through the rockies. temperatures today, even with sunshine in new mexico, arizona, and utah, very cold. las vegas today only 50 degrees. bitterly chilly windchills this morning. little rain is going to move into washington state. looks like over the next two days. even as we go through friday the chance of rain in the forecast, mostly from seattle northward. you look okay from medford down to the california coast. watching us on knbc, nbc 4, l.a., california, see an exhibition of contemporary photographs from california's first black founded town, al lensworth, a place, a people, a story. at the california african-american museum. that's your pacific event of the day. >> thanks so much. now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. for those of you keeping score, nick cod kidman is detailing what she has and hasn't done to her face. kidman, who once denied doing anything now admits to botox on her forehead saying, quote, i

move my forehead, i frown, so i've gone back to my own forehead. she denies having work done on her face. tmz reports lindsay lohan's stylist showed up yesterday at an l.a. police station to return a $2,500 necklace just before police could raid lohan's house to look for the stolen jewelry. sources told tmz returning the necklace will have no bearing on whether or not lohan is prosecuted. finally this will bring back memories, the red swimsuit that made farrah fawcett a 70s icon became part of the smith smithsonian collection yesterday on what would have been her 64th birthday. long-time companion ryan o'neal said faucet, who died in 2009 after battling cancer, always intended to give the suit which she wore in the poster of all time, to the museum. farrah made every swimsuit look good, especially that one. >> and every hair do. the amount of women that rushed

to the beauty salon to get that hair cut. >> probably more than than the aniston. >> probably. >> this comes from khsb, nbc action news in kansas city, missouri, where the snow-covered streets became a perfect play ground for one extreme sports athlete. while most of the city stayed indoors and off the roads, one missouri snowboarder decided to have a little fun with what has been giving a lot of people headaches. he had a few spills here and there. but after each fall, he got back up on his board, showing how one man's winter worries can be another's winter wonderland. looks like fun. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today, on your nbc station.

a bittersweet milestone for one iconic figure. the ken doll has turned 50. the dashing counterpart to barbie was honored at the international toy fair in germany. real life ken dolls were on hand to offer eye candy. after decades of being a couple ken and barbie split up, but a mattel spokesman hinted this could be a start of a rekindled romance. many will go to great lengths to ensure wedded bliss, but this is bizarre. a teenage boy and baby girl in india married dogs in a ritual believed to ward off evil. the children have a tooth growing higher than normal and that's believed to be the early death of a future spouse.

the unique tradition hopes to guarantee a long and happy marriage down the road. as nepal struggled with a power shortage, tv news anchors shed light on the crisis. the news was reported in a darkened studio lit with a single lantern. while the poverty stricken nation has resources, the facilities to produce energy are outdated. the broadcast was a symbolic gesture that spoke to a community dealing with 12 hours of power cuts each day. >> makeup would be easier. >> exactly. we would like that some days when we're a little tired and the circles under our eyes are a little more pronounced. >> it's shadows, lynn, not dark circles. >> exactly. time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. in california, a hearing is scheduled for phillip and nancy gur redo, the couple accused of kidnapping jaycee dugard when she was 11. dugard was found almost two decades later. a judge is expected to consider

the defense's request for a delay in the trial. big celebrations in china today as it rings in the chinese lunar new year. 2011 marks the year of the rabbit. a symbol of happiness and good fortune. and it is patient recognition day. health care providers are encouraged to stop and reflect on their dedication to patient satisfaction. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. the latest on the egyptian protests live from cairo, plus the story of one american woman trapped in tahrir square. and hear from a woman who found out her fiance was gay after a ten-year relationship. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

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