The unrest points to the growing backlash against the law, which imposes heavy restrictions on protests, among the secular political factions that rallied behind the military's ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.
Now some in the loose coalition are growing impatient with signs the military-backed interim government is taking the country down a more authoritarian path. Many non-Islamist activists say the law aims to silence any dissent ahead of a referendum on an amended constitution and other key elections.
The government says the law is needed to restore security and stability and rein in near daily protests by Morsi supporters demanding his reinstatement. The Islamist rallies have often descended into bloody clashes with security forces, leaving hundreds dead since Morsi's ouster in July. The government's message has a strong resonance among a public weary of constant protests and unrest.
But rights groups and activists say the law, issued yesterday by the interim president, will stifle Islamists and non-Islamists alike. They say it is harsher than restrictions on protests during the rule of autocrat Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted in 2011 in an uprising calling for greater democratic freedoms.
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International criticism of the law has also been growing.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement today that the law raises concerns because it does not meet international standards and will not move Egypt's transition forward.
"We urge the interim government to respect individual rights and we urge that the new constitution protect such rights," she said.