"In response to disturbances late today in the capital city, a curfew will be in place," said a government statement, which barred vehicular or pedestrian traffic from 10:00 pm (0400 GMT) to 5:00 am (1100 GMT).

Radio stations said police were deployed to disperse the protesters, who had gathered for the biggest show of support for Zelaya since his first aborted attempt to return to the country on July 5.

A previous curfew had been in force between June 28, the day President Manuel Zelaya was ousted in a military-backed coup, until the end of July.

On Tuesday, a demonstration in support of Zelaya turned violent when a group of protesters set fire to a fast-food restaurant.

The protesters were returning from a rally near the presidential palace when some began hurling rocks at a Popeye's fried chicken restaurant, and then set fire to the establishment.

Earlier, a demonstrator on a motorcycle was shot in the ankle by a traffic policeman, enraging a crowd that then set fire to a bus, a leader of the march, Juan Barahona, told AFP.

Some protesters traveled by foot from eastern and central Honduras to converge upon the capital city.

"They are afraid of us because we are not afraid," said Zelaya's daughter, Hortensia, referring to the interim government led by Roberto Micheletti and quoting a popular chant among Zelaya supporters.

The National Resistance Front, which opposes the bloodless coup that sent Zelaya into exile, has held marches in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula to step up the pressure for his return.

A proposal from Costa Rican President Oscar Arias calling for Zelaya's return to office and early elections has been rejected by the interim government.

The Organization of American States (OAS) planned to send a delegation of Latin American foreign ministers to Honduras late next week or early the following week to press for a negotiated solution to the crisis.

Meanwhile, a group of 15 US lawmakers called on President Barack Obama to freeze the accounts of Honduras's interim leaders and ban them from entering the United States.

"We ask that you instruct the Treasury Department to freeze the bank accounts and assets of individuals involved in the coup, and deny them entry into the United States," Obama's fellow Democratic lawmakers wrote in a letter dated August 7 but released on Tuesday.

"It is clear that further action is necessary to ensure that democracy is restored and the civil rights of Honduras's citizens are respected."

During a regional summit in Mexico on Monday, Obama reiterated his rejection of the coup and his desire to see democratic order restored to Honduras with Zelaya's return to power.

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