Occupy Wall Street Protesters Plan Anniversary March

Protests are planned for cities across the US to mark the two-month anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York. Officials said demonstrators could take to New York City's streets in their tens of thousands on Thursday. Organizers are hoping for a street carnival and rally at the New York Stock Exchange from 07:00. The event was planned before Tuesday's police raid that swept activists from their camp in New York.

After the demonstrators' eviction from Zuccotti Park, Thursday will show if there is still life left in the movement that has inspired solidarity protests across the US and around the world. As well as the Wall Street rally, a press release by organisers called for demonstrations in 16 New York subway stations at 15:00 (20:00 GMT), and a march from city hall to the Brooklyn Bridge two hours later.
New York Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson told reporters the authorities were braced for large crowds of protesters to congest subways and bridges. "We are certainly anticipating tens of thousands of people protesting, aimed at significant disruption of the daily lives of people of this city," Mr Wolfson said. "We take it seriously. Our forces will be deployed accordingly."

After Tuesday's surprise pre-dawn raid, police allowed demonstrators to return but banned them from setting up camp again. Numbers dwindled to less than two dozen overnight. Some of the 200 protesters detained during the eviction appeared in court on Wednesday. "This movement is really not about tents as much as it is about an idea and we're keeping the idea through a number of direct action things planned [for Thursday]," protest spokesman Ed Needham was quoted as saying by Reuters new agency.  "There's also going to be events in 100 countries around the world tomorrow."

There was outrage after an 84-year-old Seattle woman was hit by police pepper spray during a march the night before.

• Up to 80 protesters were detained after they stormed a San Francisco branch of Bank of America and tried to set up camp in the lobby
• In San Diego, nearly 10 people were arrested as police tried to dismantle an encampment in the city centre
• Police in South Carolina began arresting Occupy Columbia demonstrators at the statehouse grounds
• In London, activists outside St Paul's Cathedral were ordered to leave by Thursday evening or face legal action

A number of similar encampments have been removed in US cities in recent days. Scores of arrests were made as police removed tents in Oakland, California and Burlington, Vermont. But evictions went peacefully elsewhere, including Atlanta, Georgia; Portland, Oregon; and Salt Lake City, Utah.
Local businesses complained that the camps were a nuisance, while city officials cited health and safety concerns.

US activists say financial sector bailouts in the recession allowed banks to resume earning huge profits and paying large bonuses, while average Americans were saddled with high unemployment and job insecurity. Protesters also say the richest 1% of Americans do not pay their fair share in taxes.