Egypt (and Beyond) LiveBlog: A Normal Day?

2050 GMT: Former President Mubarak's portrait is taken down in the Cabinet Room:

Photo: Associated Press

2035 GMT: The State Department has demanded "restraint" in the Algerian regime's handling of demonstrations.

P.J. Crowley said in a statement, "We note the ongoing protests in Algeria, and call for restraint on the part of the security services. We reaffirm our support for the universal rights of the Algerian people, including assembly and expression. These rights apply on the internet. Moreover, these rights must be respected."

2030 GMT: Claims of protests tonight in Taiz in Yemen:

1750 GMT: Pro-Government protesters camped in Tahrir Square in Sanaa:

1740 GMT: The organisers of protests have called for a "march of victory" across Egypt on Friday, leading activist Khaled Abdelkader Ouda has said: "We call for a Friday march of victory in the millions across Egypt to celebrate the gains of the revolution. We will announce the members of the council of trustees on Friday."

Ouda also expressed support for the military: "We salute the armed forces for their serious steps to meet the demands of the people. We call on Egyptians to do their part and give the army a chance to proceed with the next stage."

1735 GMT: Egypt's Central Bank has declared Monday a holiday after a series of worker protests and strikes on Sunday at state-owned banks.

Banks were also due to be closed on Tuesday, which is an official holiday marking the Prophet Mohamed's birthday.

1700 GMT: Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has put off a trip to the US due to take place later this month.

"President Ali Abdullah Saleh has decided to postpone a visit to the United States...scheduled for late February due to the current developments in the region," said a staffer in Saleh's office.

Meanwhile, Al Arabiya claims at least 130 protesters were arrested in Sanaa and Taiz today.

1645 GMT: Ala'a Shehabi offers a very useful overview of the situation in Bahrain, where protests are planned for tomorrow:

How many will actually turn out on the day and how the regime will respond to this call for protest is hard to tell. The author has heard the 14th of February being discussed among private school children and Jimmy Choo-clad women –-- very different from the tyre-burning unemployed youth that are the usual suspects. Will there be a severe clampdown or will the government let the protestors be? Will the proposed "makramat" (handout of $2650 to each family) be enough to appease the people’s call for reform?

1640 GMT: In Sudan, women held a vigil outside the security service headquarters on Sunday, calling for the release of sons and other men arrested during protests.

In another part of Khartoum, security officers prevented journalists from gathering to take part in a second protest against the arrest of colleagues. Officers detained five TV cameramen and photographers trying to cover the event.

More than 20 women, carrying photographs of arrested men, had gathered quietly outside the national security headquarters on Sunday morning.

1620 GMT: Reports this afternoon that a new demonstration for change and democracy has been called in Algeria for Saturday.

1615 GMT: Tunisia's Foreign Minister, Ahmed Ounaies, has submitted his resignation.

Ounaies had angered many Tunisians by complimenting Michele Alliot-Marie, his French counterpart. France is suspected of playing a role in propping up the regime of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, which was overthrown last month.

1600 GMT: Back from a mini-golf break to find that Egypt is effectively under military rule....

The Supreme Military Council issued Communique Number 5 this afternoon, suspending the Parliament and the Constitution. The Council promised to hand over power after the six months or the next election, whichever comes first.

Significantly, the Council put out its communique even as Prime Minister Shafiq was giving his stumbling --- and largely irrelevant --- press conference.

Activists have been split over the statement. Some have expressed scepticism at a military seizure of power, but an Al Jazeera correspondent reported that others are satisfied main demands have been met and will leave Tahrir Square in Cairo. Opposition leader Ayman Nour has also said that most of the protest's objectives have been met.

1309 GMT: The Minister of Interior responded to today's protest by police with the promises that salaries will be increased and demands will be heeded. A picture of the demonstration:

1305 GMT: An activist reports that "thousands" of unemployed young men are protesting in Annaba in Algeria.

1300 GMT: Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq has been holding a press confernce, declaring, "We are trying to restore all avenues of our normal life," and saying that security is getting better day by day.

However, not all was normal. Soon after Shafiq spoke about the resignation of Minister of Information Anas el Fiqi --- who is reportedly now under house arrest --- the transmission was cut.

1255 GMT: Tahrir Square in Cairo this afternoon:

1245 GMT: Today's anti-Government protest in Yemen:

1230 GMT: Back from a break to find a series of developments....

Police have blocked an anti-Government demonstration in Sanaa in Yemen, with reports of detentions.

"Hundreds" marched toward a Presidential Palace chanting, "First Mubarak, now Ali," referring to Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Security forces put up a barbed wire barricade and blocked the protesters' path about two miles from the palace. The demonstrators turned away and attempted to reach the palace through side streets.

A CNN crew at the scene was surrounded by security officers, who seized videotapes. Nearby, a group of about 40 pro-government demonstrators chanted, "With our souls, with our blood, we will sacrifice for Ali."

The Chinese news service Xinhua is reporting, however, that the opposition has accepted the offer of President Saleh not to seek another Presidential term or hand over power to his son: "We accept the political reform initiative offered by President Saleh on Feb. 2. We are ready to begin the national dialogue with the President's ruling party as of this week."

The opposition claimed, "President Saleh announced in a meeting with the members of Parliament and Consultative Council and army leaders to cancel all unilateral constitutional changes that were proposed in January by his ruling party." It said it was ready to take part in a national unity government: "We have frozen all opposition protest against the regime...but we call on President Saleh and his ruling party to keep all their commitments and absorb the lessons from the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt."

The statement also demanded that Saleh release all those arrested during demonstrations.

1050 GMT: Other developments in Egypt....

The Army have now reportedly apologised to protesting police for firing blanks into the air outside the Ministry of Interior.

In Alexandria, a few hundred workers at the Bank of Alexandria are holding a protest, demanding details be released about the bank's sale by the state to the private sector. Several hundred workers from the building company The Arab Contractors, used for almost all major construction projects by the state, are protesting in downtown Alexandria demanding better pay.

A Cabinet spokesman has said there will not be a major reshuffle, "The shape of the government will stay until the process of transformation is done in a few months, then a new government will be appointed based on the democratic principles in place."

People in Suez have vowed to resume protesting if the Governor and police chief are not sacked within a week.

1035 GMT: A large number of people --- thousands? --- are heading towards Tahrir Square in Cairo amidst reports that the military were trying to clear the square.

1015 GMT: The Army is firing blank shots in the air in front of the Ministry of Interior to disperse about 500 low-ranking police officers who are protesting. The demonstrators are chanting, "Peaceful, peaceful."

0940 GMT: This provocative claim from Al Masry Al Youm, "Former President Hosni Mubarak has arrived in Baden Baden, Germany to receive medical treatment."

0905 GMT: Confrontations between anti-Government and pro-Government protesters continue today in Sanaa in Yemen:

And in Cairo, it is policemen who are protesting over working conditions and demanding cancellation of their trial before military courts:

0900 GMT: Writing in The Guardian, Karima Bennoune gives a first-hand account of Saturday's protest in Algiers, estimating more than 1,000 demonstrators on the Place de 1er Mai, chanting, "Djazair Horra Dimocratia" ("A free and democratic Algeria"), "système dégage" ("government out") and indeed, "Yesterday Egypt, today Algeria". She comments:

The single most moving part of the day was the women's demonstration. A group of about 50 of the many women present –-- a few young women in hijab, many other young women in jeans, older, seasoned feminist activists wearing khaffiyehs and dresses --– took up position next to the bus station at 1st of May Square holding a large Algerian flag. One of these women, prominent psychologist Cherifa Bouatta, told me on Friday as we watched the celebration in Cairo: "I have been waiting for this for years. This is the beginning. From the years of terrorism [the 1990s] and what came after, everything seemed lost. Our hopes for a just society were dying. But now the possibilities are fantastic."

On Saturday in 1st of May Square, she and the other women explored those possibilities. They occupied the street; they called for profound political change; they ululated (what Algerians call "pousser les youyous"; a high-pitched glottal chanting); they sang "Kassaman", the national anthem, and "listiqlal" (independence), a song of the anti-colonial movement that freed the country from French rule in 1962 at the cost of a million martyrs. Most importantly, they refused to cede to the police. The pro-Boutef [President Bouteflika[ youth repeatedly confronted them, and even began shouting in favour of an Islamic state at one point as a confused riposte to the women.

The most surreal moment came as I watched the unyielding female activists attacked by a group of young policewomen in pants and boots – their own career paths only imaginable thanks to the hard work of some of the very women activists they hit and shoved. A young policewoman, the age of one of the students I teach, slapped me for taking a picture as this occurred. The women protesters' only "crime" had been to stand peacefully on the sidewalk of their own capital city singing the national anthem and calling for democracy.

0755 GMT: A Google Map has been set up to track events in Algeria.

0745 GMT: Claimed footage of a demonstration in front of the Telecommunications Office in Tunisia on Saturday:

0735 GMT: A lengthy article in The New York Times recounts the division in the US Administration during the Egyptian crisis on Washington's position with President Mubarak, the military, and the protesters.

0730 GMT: A reminder from Friday in Egypt --- the celebration in front of the house of Khaled Said, the man whose death at the hands of police helped sparked the protests that overthrew President Mubarak:

0640 GMT: Information to bypass the Algerian Government's blocking of Google, Facebook, and Twitter has been posted.

The website of Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, knocked off-line yesterday, is still down.

0630 GMT: For the first day in weeks, we are not awaking to the prospect of a large protest march. Tomorrow our eyes will be on Iran and Bahrain, but this morning is for thinking about whether there is a return to "normal" life.

In Egypt, the Supreme Military Council is still relying on holding statements, notably the promise --- without details --- to return to a civilian government. The Army began clearing the barricades around Cairo's Tahrir Square, the symbolic heart of the uprising, even allowing some traffic through the square for the first time since 25 January.

Protesters chanted "Peacefully, peacefully" as the soldiers moved, although a few resisted the line of troops and there was some pushing and shoving. One demonstrator assured, "The army is the backbone of Egypt. Their solution is not to remove us from the square. They must respond to our demands." However, protest organiser Safwat Hegazi promised, "If the army does not fulfil our demands, our uprising and its measures will return stronger." 

In Algeria, the protesters achieved an initial aim of visibility, with thousands being photographed and filmed in Algiers and others reported in cities across the country, before police dispersed them and organisers pledged to meet today to consider next steps. In Yemen, about 4,000 anti-Government marchers faced the challenge of a larger demonstration of 10,000, supporting President Ali Abdullah Saleh, occupying Tahrir Square in Sanaa.