November 17, 2011 -- Updated 1606 GMT (0006 HKT)

New York's Zuccotti Park is nearly empty at dawn on Wednesday.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: CNN sees some arrests in New York
- NEW: Plans in Portland, Oregon, Thursday include "occupy banks"
- NEW: Occupy Los Angeles plans to "shut down" an intersection downtown
- Seattle's mayor apologizes for pepper spray incident
Here is a roundup of some of the movement's recent developments.
NEW YORK
Protesters in New York launched what they called an effort to "shut down Wall Street" Thursday morning at the beginning of a nationwide day of what could be the Occupy movement's largest protests yet. A heavy police presence was in place as protesters kicked off the effort with the early morning demonstration against Wall Street. New York police say as many as 60 protesters were arrested, most for obstructing traffic. CNN personnel saw some of the arrests, including that of a retired Philadelphia police captain, Ray Lewis, who had joined with the Occupy Wall Street protesters.
Meanwhile, a police spokesman told CNN four police officers were taken to the hospital after being splashed with an unknown liquid by a protester. All the officers were able to walk to the ambulance, the spokesman said.
Occupy Wall Street also plans to "occupy the subways," a plan to gather at 16 hubs, and "take the square," meaning Foley Square, across from City Hall, on Thursday. And they plan a march across the Brooklyn Bridge.
Protesters say they want Thursday to be a day of non-violent protest, although it comes a day after a demonstrator was arrested for making violent threats. Nkrumah Tinsley was arrested after being seen in a YouTube video making threats to use a Molotov cocktail on Macy's department store, New York police said. He also was seen in another part of the video threatening to "burn down the city" Thursday. About 200 people were arrested Wednesday, police said.
What's next for Occupy Wall Street?
Sachs: OWS movement marks change
Health concerns over Occupy movement
Cracking down on Occupy protests For two months, the movement has been based in Lower Manhattan and has spawned similar demonstrations in cities nationwide and around the world.
DALLAS
Police evicted an Occupy encampment from City Hall property early Thursday, city officials said in a statement. Beginning at about midnight, "police made several announcements, over a 90-minute period of time, via loudspeakers asking for demonstrators to leave," the statement said. Those that refused to leave were arrested shortly after 1:30 a.m. (2:30 p.m. ET). Eighteen people were arrested, the statement said, and a crisis intervention team assisted seven people in obtaining shelter.
PORTLAND, Oregon
The Occupy movement plans events Thursday in Portland, including "occupy banks." "Let's shut them down!" the organizing website says.
A public march was scheduled to begin Thursday morning. "No one attending the march need risk arrest!" the website says.
LOS ANGELES
The group Occupy Los Angeles plans an event "to take over" part of downtown Los Angeles on Thursday morning. Activists are to meet at a plaza and "march to the corner of Figueroa and 4th St., where we will shut down the intersection," the group says on its website.
Events Thursday were also being planned in Boston, Minneapolis, and Lexington, Kentucky, among other cities.
SEATTLE
Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn apologized to protesters on Wednesday following a confrontation late Tuesday that ended in demonstrators being pepper sprayed, according to CNN affiliate KCPQ. In a statement, McGinn also said he asked Police Chief John Diaz to review the actions against Occupy Seattle protesters.
"To those engaged in peaceful protest, I am sorry that you were pepper sprayed. I spoke to (84-year-old activist who was pepper sprayed) Dorli Rainey, who I know personally, to ask how she was doing and to ask for her description of events. I also called in Seattle Police Chief John Diaz and the command staff to review the actions of last night. They agreed that this was not their preferred outcome," McGinn said in his statement.
The pepper spray incident happened when the group marched from Seattle Central Community College to the Belltown neighborhood, blocking traffic, CNN affiliate KCPQ said.
SAN FRANCISCO
Dozens of demonstrators held a sit-in at a Bank of America branch on California Street in San Francisco. There were some arrests, but the action was described by CNN's Augie Martin as "very peaceful."
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA
Gov. Nikki Haley has encouraged demonstrators to return to the state Capitol on Thursday and said their signs and chants are welcome, but not their sleeping bags and mattresses, according to CNN affiliate WIS. In a press conference Wednesday, Haley said the Capitol grounds are for citizens' use during daylight hours only and should be respected. Law enforcement arrested dozens of protesters Wednesday. One protester told WIS "We're calm, we're peaceful and we're not agitators."
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