It's Now Illegal to Go Out in Egypt With 10 Other People

Egyptian police fired water cannons at protesters outside the Interior Ministry today, in the latest application of a new law that forbids any protest not approved by the government at least three days in advance. The law also gives the Interior Ministry the right to forbid any public meeting of more than 10 people, Reuters reports, and it forbids entirely any protest at a place of worship. If anything, the law has inspired more protests. Muslim Brotherhood supporters in several cities took to the streets today.

Elsewhere in Cairo, female students at the pro-government Al-Azhar University for Islamic Learning stormed the dean's office and destroyed her desk today. A day earlier, students teamed with another school for a protest that police dispersed with tear gas, in the first application of the law. The law has also drawn condemnation from human rights groups; Amnesty International said it "poses a grave threat to freedom of assembly and give security forces free rein to use excessive force." But Egypt's prime minister says it is actually intended to "protect the rights of protesters," and said they must give "notice," not seek permission, the BBC reports. (More Egypt stories.)