While Protests Rage In Egypt, North Texans Worry

ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - North Texans born in Egypt are worried about their homeland while they watch violence surge in Egyptian cities half a world away. They're even more worried about their loved ones now after the Internet was virtually shut down within the country.

Said Elsamra was born in Egypt and lives in Arlington now. The last time he visited Egypt was in January of last year when he brought back Egyptian made furniture and souvenirs. He also brought back memories of hardship.

"A lot of poor people. A lot of people standing in line for food, for bread," Elsamra said.

Though his wife and daughter are here, he has close relatives still there.

"I got nephew, niece, cousins - young people suffering like everybody else in Egypt unfortunately," he said.

But Elsamra no longer has any way of contacting them: Egypt shut down Internet use within its borders after protestors took to Facebook and Twitter.

"No Internet. No Facebook. No email. No telephones. No phone calls. So it's very troubling; very disturbing," he said.

The Egyptian government, Elsamra said, cut off communication.

Elsamra had his television tuned to Al Jazeera English TV when Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak addressed the violence in his country. But Elsamra said Mubarak is the one to blame for it.

"It's all lies. He's a dictator. He's a politician and it's too late," Elsamra said. "He had 30 years."

For business owners, there's also concern about the flow of goods from Egypt. Dee Dee Asad owns an Egyptian import shop in Garland called Little Egypt. She's sold big-ticket items to companies like Disney. But, it's not her business that she's worried about.

"I'm really going to start to cry. I really feel sorry for my family and my friends. It's Egypt, you know. I born there," Asad said.

Asad said she travels to Egypt once every two months. She has another ticket to travel to Egypt Thursday. She said she's going to cancel it. It's too dangerous to go back right now.

"I think Egypt needs a lot of help now, a lot of help," she said.