Egyptian authorities have arrested al-Jazeera's bureau chief and one of its journalists in Cairo, the Doha-based television channel said on Saturday, amid anti-government protests in the capital.

"Egypt's security services have arrested al-Jazeera bureau chief in Cairo Abdel Fattah Fayed and the journalist Ahmed Yousef," the pan-Arab channel, banned since last Sunday from operating in Egypt, reported on its website.

Egyptians in Lebanon are anxiously watching developments in their strife-torn homeland, fearing that their country is sliding into an unending cycle of chaos and political turmoil.

"All I can think, watching the protests, is that we are going to be the next Lebanon or even the next Iraq," said Shahta al-Masri, a Beirut gas station attendant who hails from Al-Mahalla Al-Kubra in the Nile Delta.

Gunmen firing on protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square killed four people on Thursday as the thousands demanding President Hosni Mubarak go stood firm in their increasingly bloody 10-day revolt.

"All (four) were killed by gunshot, with one hit in the head," said Dr. Mohammed Ismail, at a makeshift clinic in Abdulmenem Riad Square, next to Tahrir (Liberation) Square, taking the death toll over the past 24 hours to seven.

The United Nations cultural organization urged Egyptian authorities and protesters Tuesday to protect the country's heritage and respect freedom of expression during the ongoing political crisis.

There have been reports of a looting attempt at Cairo's renowned Egyptian Museum and other historical sites, as well as of citizens taking it upon themselves to set up a cordon to protect their nation's heritage.

Omar Sharif, Egypt's most famous actor, says he's concerned for the future of his country.

Cairo's Tahrir Square, where protests have been centered, is visible from his high-rise apartment and helicopters buzz overhead.

The United States started organizing Sunday the evacuation of its nationals from Egypt as an angry anti-government revolt raged into a sixth day amid increasing lawlessness and mass jail breaks.

"The U.S. embassy in Cairo informs U.S. citizens in Egypt who wish to depart that the department of state is making arrangements to provide transportation to safehaven locations in Europe," an embassy statement said, as other countries issued travel warnings and tourists scrambled for flights out.

Lebanon’s ambassador to Cairo Khaled Ziade has informed Caretaker Foreign Minister Ali al-Shami that Lebanese citizens in Egypt were unhurt following violent demonstrations against the Mubarak regime.

Shami’s office said in a statement that the Caretaker foreign minister was following up closely the situation of the Lebanese community in Egypt.