Mohammed Tolba (center) talks with friends at a coffee shop in the Cairo suburbs. The 33-year-old Egyptian is trying to change the public perception of Salafists, Muslims who believe in a literal interpretation of the Quran.
Credit John W. Poole / NPR
Tolba sports a bushy beard — a marker of religious conservatives — yet also wears Western-style jeans. He says he doesn't agree with all aspects of modern life in Egypt, yet he knows he cannot change things overnight.
NPR Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep is nearing the end of his Revolutionary Road Trip, a journey across North Africa to see how the countries that staged revolutions last year are remaking themselves. Steve and his team began in Tunisia's ancient city of Carthage, drove across the deserts of Libya, and filed this report from the third and final country, Egypt.
Friday's announcement by the Obama administration that the U.S. plans to stop deporting some illegal immigrants received mixed reviews in Alabama. That state has one of the most aggressive anti-immigration laws in the country.
General Motors is pinning some of its hopes for the future on its gas-electric hybrid the Chevy Volt. After a slow start last year, Volt sales are beginning to pick up. According to Edmunds.com, Volt sales so far this year are almost level with all of last year's sales. GM has sold about 7,000 of the hybrids.
The main opposition group in Syria is making a renewed push to unify various strands of the anti-regime movement. The new head of the Syrian National Council wants to broaden the group's appeal, and combat fears that it is dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood.
An Elvis impersonator may be a cliche, but Zac Hutchenson and Chastity Floyd found something original to do. They reenacted the wedding of Elvis Presley's parents over the weekend in Verona, Miss. Back in 1933, Vernon Presley was too young to marry without his parents' permission. So at age 17, he lied about his age, borrowed the cash for a license and wed Gladys Smith.