Anderson Cooper leaves Egypt as protests calm

Anderson Cooper has left Egypt after reporting on the country's anti-government protests from Cairo's Tahrir Square for several days.

Last week, Cooper was attacked by a faction of pro-government demonstrators while trying to file a report on the city's increasingly violent clashes.

The CNN anchor took to his official Twitter account over the weekend to announce that he planned to return to the United States.

"It is with a heavy heart that I have decided to leave Egypt. CNN continues to have many teams in place," Cooper wrote.

He added: "It was a hard decision to leave."

In recent days, the country-wide demonstrations have calmed as Egypt's Vice President Omar Suleiman has initiated direct talks with opposition leaders.

Cooper is expected to host this evening's edition of Anderson Cooper 360 from CNN's New York City studios.

Anderson Cooper attacked in Egypt

CNN anchor Anderson Cooper and his news crew were attacked on Wednesdays by protesters in Cairo.

While covering the increasingly violent clashes between by pro and anti-government protesters in Egypt, Cooper and his two associates were the victims of a physical assault by a group that supports the country's president Hosni Sayyid Mubarak, he said.

Cooper later tweeted that he was "punched and kicked repeatedly" until he was able to escape Cairo's Tahrir Square, which has proven to be the centre of the city's protests.

The Los Angeles Times quotes the TV presenter as saying that he views his own run-in with violent protesters as a representation of the anger that is currently gripping Egypt.

"To me, the story today is not me being attacked - it's the melee that continues," Cooper said.

He continued: "This is a stunning development, and it's not clear what kind of impact it's going to have. Is it going to enrage people who'd been standing on the sidelines to see these anti-Mubarak protesters attacked in such an organised way, with the Egyptian military standing by not doing anything to intervene? Perhaps. Will it scare people? Maybe it will have that effect. We don't know."

The anchor remains in Cairo and is to host tonight's edition of Anderson Cooper 360 from the city.