Hong Kong riot police used tear gas to disperse protesters outside a police station following two days of disruption and Chinese forces seen amassing near the region.
In the blue-collar Sham Shui Po area, police fired tear gas on Wednesday night at a group of protesters rallying outside the station, where demonstrators had gathered to burn fake currency and incense as a way to show their opposition to the police.
The protest took place during the month-long Hungry Ghost Festival, when offerings are made to ward off the spirits of ancestors. Police armed with riot shields and batons marched through the area. Officers carried warning flags and fired tear gas as they advanced, but protesters had already scrambled away.
It comes as video footage and satellite images emerged showing hundreds of military vehicles gathered at a sports centre in a mainland city bordering Hong Kong in an ominous sign that China might be preparing a tough crackdown on the city’s protesters who Beijing has branded ‘terrorists’.
U.S. President Donald Trump yesterday said Chinese troops were moving to the border with Hong Kong, citing U.S. intelligence.
China said on Wednesday Hong Kong’s protest movement had reached ‘near terrorism’ and more street clashes followed ugly scenes the previous day when protesters set upon men they suspected of being government sympathisers.
Meanwhile, three dozen demonstrators remained camped at the region’s airport arrivals area, asking travellers and the general public for forgiveness after their blockade previously turned into chaotic and frenzied violence.
While the movement’s supporters still have street protests planned, it is unclear what their next move is or whether they will be able to find new rallying sites to keep the pressure on authorities.
Police fire tear-gas shells to disperse Pro-Democracy protestors in the Sham Shui Po Area of Hong Kong on August 14
A passerby covers her face after Police personnel fired tear-gas shells to disperse Pro-Democracy protestors this evening
Police fire tear gas at anti-extradition bill protesters during clashes in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong, China, August 14
The protest took place during the month-long Hungry Ghost Festival, when offerings are made to ward off the spirits of ancestors
Policemen cross over a bridge as they arrive at a gathering called by Pro-Democracy Protestors in the Sham Shui Po Area of Hong Kong
Protesters spread pamphlets and posters on the floor in one section of the terminal but were not impeding travellers. Online, they also circulated letters and promotional materials apologising for the inconveniences during the past five days of the airport occupation.
‘It is not our intention to cause delays to your travels and we do not want to cause inconvenience to you,’ said an emailed statement from a group of protesters.
‘We ask for your understanding and forgiveness as young people in Hong Kong continue to fight for freedom and democracy.’
The airport’s management said it had obtained ‘an interim injunction to restrain persons from unlawfully and wilfully obstructing or interfering’ with airport operations.
It said an area of the airport had been set aside for demonstrations, but no protests would be allowed outside the designated area.
New footage and satellite images emerge showing hundreds of military vehicles gathered at a sports centre in a mainland city bordering Hong Kong in an ominous sign that China could be preparing a tough crackdown
U.S. President Donald Trump yesterday said Chinese troops were moving to the border with Hong Kong, citing U.S. intelligence (pictured: Footage and satellite images emerge showing hundreds of military vehicles gathered at a sports centre in a mainland city)
A protester stands in front of the police during an anti-government rally in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong, on August 14
Pro-Democracy protestors flash laser-lights at Police personnel in the Sham Shui Po Area of Hong Kong on August 14, 2019
Anti-extradition bill protesters extinguish a tear gas cartridge during clashes with police in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong
A Pro-Democracy protester runs to throw back a tear-gas shell fired by Police personnel in the Sham Shui Po Area
An anti-extradition bill protester throws a tear gas cartridge during clashes with police in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong
Medical staff and protesters carry an injured man as they face off with policemen near the Shum Shui Po police station in Hong Kong
A police officer advances during clashes with an anti-extradition bill protester in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong, China, August 14
Additional identification checks were in place, but check-in counters were open and flights appeared to be operating normally.
The demonstration had resulted in more than 100 flight cancellations on Tuesday and about 200 on Monday.
Hong Kong police said they arrested five people during clashes at the airport Tuesday night.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Operations Mak Chin-ho said the men, aged between 17 and 28, were arrested for illegal assembly. Two were also charged with assaulting a police officer and possessing weapons as riot police sought to clear the terminal.
Hong Kong law permits life imprisonment for those who commit violent acts or acts that might interfere with flight safety at an airport.
More than 74 million travellers pass through Hong Kong’s airport each year, making it ‘not an appropriate place of protest’, Mr Mak said.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is calling for a peaceful solution to the unrest in Hong Kong amid fears China could use force to quell pro-democracy protests
U.S. President Donald Trump yesterday said Chinese troops were moving to the border with Hong Kong, citing U.S. intelligence (pictured: Police fire tear gas to disperse protesters attending an anti-government rally in Sham Shui Po)
While the movement’s supporters still have street protests planned, it is unclear what their next move is or whether they will be able to find new rallying sites to keep the pressure on authorities
Police fire tear gas at anti-extradition bill protesters during clashes in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong, China, August 14
A woman reacts as Police personnel fire tear-gas shells to disperse Pro-Democracy protestors in the Sham Shui Po Area of Hong Kong on August 14, 2019
A handout satellite image shows military and security vehicles parked in the Shenzhen Bay Sports Center in Shenzhen
‘Hong Kong police have always facilitated peaceful and orderly protests over the years, but the extremely radical and violent acts have certainly crossed the line and are to be most severely condemned,’ he said.
‘The police pledge to all citizens of Hong Kong that we will take steps to bring all culprits to justice.’
That was backed up by a statement on a new government website set up to provide the latest information on the crisis, which said: ‘The police will take relentless enforcement action to bring the persons involved to justice.’
Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific said it had cancelled 272 flights in the past two days, affecting more than 55,000 passengers, while 622 departures and arrivals went ahead.
Cathay also said it has fired two pilots in an apparent response to their involvement in activity related to pro-democracy protests. They included one pilot who is ‘currently involved in legal proceedings’.
The airport disruptions grew from a summer of demonstrations aimed at what many Hong Kong residents see as an increasing erosion of the freedoms they were promised in 1997 when Communist Party-ruled mainland China took over what had been a British colony.
More than 700 protesters have been arrested in total since the start of mass protests in early June.
The demonstrators demand that Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam steps down and scraps proposed legislation under which some suspects could be sent to mainland China, where critics say they could face torture and unfair or politically charged trials.
Ms Lam has rejected calls for dialogue, saying the protesters are threatening to push their home into an ‘abyss’.
Anti-extradition bill protesters watch as demonstrators point laser pens at the police station in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong, China, August 14
Police advance through the Sham Shui Po neighbourhood during clashes with anti-extradition bill protesters
Chinese state media also released videos to show tanks and military trucks being mobilised to the city bordering Hong Kong
Hong Kong and the mainland Chinese city of Shenzhen shares a 37-kilometre-long (22-mile-long) border. The satellite images suggested the military trucks have been assembled in Shenzhen Bay, a stone’s throw from Hong Kong across the water
The United States said today that it was concerned about movements of Chinese forces on the border with Hong Kong and urged Beijing to honor the territory’s autonomy as pro-democracy protests continued.
‘The United States is deeply concerned by reports of Chinese paramilitary movement along the Hong Kong border’, a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.
‘The United States strongly urges Beijing to adhere to its commitments in the Sino-British Joint Declaration to allow Hong Kong to exercise a high degree of autonomy.’
The news comes after multiple Chinese state media released videos to show tanks and military trucks being mobilised to Shenzhen, which shares a 22-mile-long border with Hong Kong.
In a latest round of clashes today, Hong Kong police fired tear gas at hundreds of protesters who had gathered outside a police station in the residential area of Sham Shui Po in Kowloon.
It is said the protesters were gathering to commemorate the traditional ‘Hungry Ghost Festival’ which falls on the 14th day of the seventh month on the lunar calendar.
They were reportedly paying tribute to six people who had committed suicide during the course of the city’s pro-democracy movement since the beginning of June.
The protesters shone laser lights at Sham Shui Po police station while officers aimed big flash lights at the activists, it is reported.
Tear gas was fired after demonstrators refused to leave or flashing laser lights at the police building, according to South China Morning Post.
Police stand guard as protesters attend an anti-government rally in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong, China, 14 August 2019
An anti-extradition bill protester throws a tear gas cartridge during clashes with police in Sham Shui Po in Hong Kong, China
Occupying 82.7 acres, Shenzhen Bay Sports Center (pictured) was completed in 2011 and cost 2.3 billion yuan (£217 million)
Police advance through the Sham Shui Po neighbourhood during clashes with anti-extradition bill protesters in Hong Kong
Shenzhen Bay Port (pictured) is one of the six ports of entry between Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The port is popular with Chinese residents who regularly travel to Hong Kong to shop. As many as 190,000 people pass through the port every day
Beijing has also rejected requests for two U.S. Navy warships to visit Hong Kong, according to U.S. Navy, after the two countries engaged in a war of words over the city’s pro-democracy demonstrations.
Hong Kong has been rocked by protests over the past two months against a proposed bill that would allow people to be extradited from the city to stand trial in Communist Party-controlled courts in mainland China.
The mass display of opposition to the bill has morphed into a wider pro-democracy movement that has thrown down the most significant challenge to Beijing’s authority since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
The unrest escalated dramatically yesterday after anti-riot police officers stormed Hong Kong International Airport and fired pepper spray at protesters during bloody clashes.
Police advance through the Sham Shui Po neighbourhood during clashes with anti-extradition bill protesters
The latest round of clashes comes after the city’s two-month anti-government movement escalated with bloody confrontations between the police and activists at the international airport last night. Five people were arrested as a result
It is said the protesters were gathering to commemorate the traditional ‘ghost festival’ which falls on the 14th day of the seventh month on the lunar calendar. They were reportedly paying tribute to six protesters who had committed suicide
An anti-extradition bill protester helps another one after the police fired tear gas to disperse a crowd at Sham Shui Po
The protesters reportedly shone laser lights at Sham Shui Po police station while officers aimed big flash lights at the activists
Policemen stand guard as protesters attend an anti-government rally outside Sham Shui Po police station in Kowloon today
Hong Kong has been engulfed in protests since early June – at first to oppose the now-suspended extradition bill that would have allowed Hong Kong to send suspects to mainland. The protests have developed into an anti-government movement
Protesters apologised to travellers today with pamphlets and posters.
One woman was seen holding a poster that read: ‘We’re deeply sorry about what happened yesterday. We were desperate and we made imperfect decisions. Please accept our apology.’
Another man’s signboard said: ‘Sorry for the inconvenience caused! We are fighting for our freedom!’
The satellite pictures collected on Monday by Maxar’s WorldView show 500 or more vehicles sitting on and around the soccer stadium at the Shenzhen Bay Sports Center just across the harbor from the Asian financial hub.
Chinese state media have said only that the exercises had been planned before hand and were not directly related to the unrest in Hong Kong, although they came shortly after the central government in Beijing said the protests were beginning to show the ‘sprouts of terrorism.’
The chief of Chinese military in Hong Kong has previously warned that his troops were determined to safeguard national sovereignty in his first response to the city’s ongoing protests.
China’s Hong Kong Liaison office said today that anti-government protesters were no different to ‘terrorists’ after two mainland Chinese citizens were attacked by demonstrators at the airport ‘for being undercover agents’.
Bloody clashes broke out between the demonstrators and anti-riot police last night at Hong Kong International Airport, which had been paralysed by mass pro-democracy rallies for two days.
Amid chaotic scenes officers armed with pepper spray and swinging batons confronted the pro-democracy activists and a number of violent scuffles broke out, resulting in five arrests.
At one stage demonstrators surrounded a policeman who had forced a protester to the floor, grabbed his baton from him and started attacking him, until he took out his gun and pointed it at them. Hong Kong police said the officer’s act was reasonable and lawful.
The Beijing-based Hong Kong and Macau Affairs office on Wednesday said extremely violent crimes must be severely punished in accordance with the law.
The strongly worded statements by China’s central government follow fierce confrontations between black clad protesters and riot police at Hong Kong’s international airport, which saw hundreds of flights halted for a second day in one of the world’s busiest transit hubs.
Cathay Pacific Airways, the city’s flag carrier, has terminated the employment of two pilots, the company said on Wednesday, after it suspended them in the past week over their involvement in the protests.
A few dozen protesters remained at the airport on Wednesday while workers scrubbed it clean of blood and debris. Check-in counters reopened to queues of hundreds of weary travellers who had waited overnight for their flights.
Protesters apologised to travellers today with pamphlets and posters. One woman’s poster reads: ‘We’re deeply sorry about what happened yesterday. We were desperate and we made imperfect decisions. Please accept our apology’
Another protester holds a signboard that says: ‘Sorry for the inconvenience caused! We are fighting for our freedom!’
An anti-extradition bill protester offers an apology to passengers. About three dozen protesters remained camped in the airport’s arrivals area a day after a mass demonstration and frenzied mob violence forced more than 100 flight cancelations
The airport’s management said it had obtained ‘an interim injunction to restrain persons from unlawfully and willfully obstructing or interfering’ with airport operations after the busy transit hub witnessed a night of fierce confrontations
Additional identification checks were in place, but check-in counters were open and flights appeared to be operating normally.
Protesters spread pamphlets and posters across the floor in a section of the terminal but were not impeding travelers. Online, they also circulated letters and promotional materials apologizing to travelers and the general public for inconveniences during the past five days of airport occupations.
‘It is not our intention to cause delays to your travels and we do not want to cause inconvenience to you,’ said an emailed statement from a group of protesters. ‘We ask for your understanding and forgiveness as young people in Hong Kong continue to fight for freedom and democracy.’
A police officer aims his gun against protesters during the demonstration in Hong Kong airport during yesterday’s clashes
Five people were detained last night, bringing the number of those arrested since the protests began in June to over 600
Protesters surround a man carrying a T-shirt baring the words ‘I love HK police’ who protesters claimed was a police officer from mainland China. The man turned out to be a journalist working for China’s state newspaper Global Times
Bloody clashes broke out between the demonstrators and anti-riot police last night when travellers were still waiting and arriving at Hong Kong International Airport, which had been paralysed by mass pro-democracy rallies for two days
Ten weeks of increasingly violent clashes between police and pro-democracy protesters, angered by a perceived erosion of freedoms, have plunged the Asian financial hub into its worst crisis since it reverted from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
China’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said it strongly condemned the ‘near terrorism criminal actions’ in Hong Kong including what it called a violent attack on a mainland Chinese journalist and tourist at the airport.
The authority said in a statement that the act of violence ‘had utterly disregarded law and discipline, violated human rights and destroyed humanity’.
‘[It] has gone below the bottom line of a civilised society completely and is no different to the savage acts of terrorists,’ it added.
Police condemned violent acts by protesters overnight and said a large group had ‘harassed and assaulted a visitor and a journalist’. Some protesters said they believed one of those men was an undercover Chinese agent, while another was confirmed as a reporter from China’s Global Times newspaper.
Chinese media suggested that the reporter was attacked after protesters found a mainland Chinese passport and a T-shirt that said ‘I love HK police’ on him.
A protester wrestles with a police officer during the demonstration in Hong Kong international airport yesterday
Fu Guohao, a reporter of Chinese media Global Times website, is tied by protesters during a mass demonstration yesterday
Riot police use pepper spray to disperse anti-extradition bill protesters during a mass demonstration after a woman was allegedly shot in the eye during a rally on Sunday. Police and protesters have clashed outside the Terminal 1 of the airport
Medics help a detained man, who protesters claimed was a police officer from mainland China, during a demonstration at the Airport in Hong Kong on Tuesday evening amid violent clashes between police and protesters
A photographer is seen trying to separate a policeman from a woman on the floor. The scuffles broke out yesterday evening between police and protesters after an injured person was taken out of the main terminal by medics
Riot police use pepper spray on protesters. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has urged Hong Kong to exercise restraint and investigate evidence of its forces firing tear gas at protesters in ways banned under international law
One man, believed to be a protester, is seriously wounded during the clash at the Hong Kong airport. Officers armed with pepper spray and swinging batons confronted the protesters who used luggage carts to barricade entrances to the terminal
Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of China’s state newspaper Global Times, confirmed that the journalist was a correspondent working for the paper named Fu Guohao.
Hu said in a tweet: ‘I affirm this man being tied in this video is the reporter himself.
‘He has no other task except for reporting.
‘I sincerely ask the demonstrators to release him. I also ask for help of West reporters.’
In a post on China’s Twitter-like Weibo today, Hu said the journalist was safe and being treated at the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
He called the activists ‘shameless’ and ‘cowardly’.
The editor wrote: ‘Shall we stop calling you rioters and start calling you ‘terrorists’?’
Five people were detained in the latest disturbances, police said, bringing the number of those arrested since the protests began in June to more than 600.
The protests began in opposition to a now-suspended bill that would have allowed the extradition of suspects for trial in mainland China but have swelled into wider calls for democracy.
Passengers line up at check in counters at Hong Kong International Airport today after being stranded at the hub due to rallies
Anti-government protesters continue their sit-in at a designated protest area at Hong Kong International Airport today
Hundreds of flights were halted for two consecutive days in Hong Kong International Airport, one of the world’s busiest transit hubs. A few dozen protesters remained at the airport on Wednesday while workers scrubbed it clean of blood
About three dozen protesters remain camped in the airport’s arrivals area a day after a demonstration and frenzied violence
Additional identification checks were in place, but check-in counters are open and flights appear to be operating normally
Protesters spread pamphlets and posters across the floor in a section of the terminal but are not impeding travelers
‘It is not our intention to cause delays to your travels and we do not want to cause inconvenience to you,’ said an emailed statement from a group of protesters. ‘We ask for your understanding and forgiveness as young people in Hong Kong continue to fight for freedom and democracy’
Embattled Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has said the city has been pushed into a state of ‘panic and chaos’.
Demonstrators say they are fighting the erosion of the ‘one country, two systems’ arrangement that enshrined some autonomy for Hong Kong when it returned to China in 1997.
The protests represent one of the biggest challenges for Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.
In Washington, U.S. President Donald Trump said the Chinese government was moving troops to the border with Hong Kong and urged calm.
China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has a garrison in Hong Kong but has remained in barracks since the protests started in April. However, the PLA garrison has issued a video showing ‘anti-riot’ exercises, and its top brass have warned violence is ‘absolutely impermissible’.
People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of China’s Communist Party, this week also released a video to show military vehicles being mobilised to Shenzhen.
The paper warned that Chinese law gives the country’s People’s Armed Police Force the right to crack down on riots, chaos and terrorist attacks.
Security at Hong Kong airport on Wednesday was stricter than usual with several entrances closed, police patrolling and staff checking traveller identification.
Pro-democracy protesters try to occupy the departures hall during another demonstration at Hong Kong’s international airport today. Hong Kong airport authority has suspended all departure check-ins on a second day due to the demonstration
A tourist (central) gives her luggage to security guards as she tries to enter the departures gate during another demonstration by pro-democracy protesters today. The activists have gathered to denounce alleged police violence and call for reforms
Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters (bottom) block access to the departure gates during another demonstration at Hong Kong’s international airport today. The airport authority has advised members of the public not to come to the airport
Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters (centre) crowd the area in front of the departure gates to block access. The airport re-opened this morning after around 200 flights were cancelled yesterday due to a 5,000-strong protest in the terminal building
In this combination of photos taken on Monday, Aug. 12, 2019, protesters wear eyepatches during a demonstration at the airport in Hong Kong. Protesters who have occupied Hong Kong International Airport wore bandages over one eye in a sign of solidarity with a comrade reportedly hit with a type of non-lethal ammunition known as a beanbag round
A pro-democracy protester holds a placard which lists the protesters five demands to the government. The demonstrators are demanding the city’s leader completely withdraw the extradition bill and retract the statement that protesters are ‘rioters’
Posters in the airport were calling for demonstrations under the banner: ‘an eye for an eye’. The slogan refers to a seriously wounded female protester, who was said to be shot in the eye by the police with a bean bag round during a clash on Sunday. Pictured, a nurse with her one-eye covered takes part in a solidarity protest at the Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong today
Police on motorbikes are ready to set out at today’s drill in Shenzhen, which has been branded a counterterrorist exercise
Police officers are assembled to take part in a drill in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, as they face rioters played by actors
The police fire a type of newly developed tear gas at the on-coming crowd during a staged clash at a drill in Shenzhen
Protesters played by actors react after police fired new tear gas canisters which could reportedly disperse a larger crowd
Pictures of the drill have been released on Twitter-like Weibo by Shenzhen police, the organiser of today’s anti-riot mission
Hong Kong’s Airport Authority said it would only allow entry for passengers with a boarding pass valid for the next 24 hours and had obtained an interim court injunction to stop people from obstructing operations. Protesters are only allowed to demonstrate in designated areas.
Some protesters expressed remorse for the clashes overnight. One 22-year-old frontliner who identified himself as Pun said protesters needed to re-evaluate their strategy to continue with the fight.
‘We are not trying to overthrow the government or cut ourselves off from China. But we fight for our rights; democracy was promised as part of ‘One country Two systems’.’
Flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways published a half-page advertisement in the Hong Kong Economic Journal pledging its support for the government and calling for the resumption of the rule of law and social order.
Chinese military’s Hong Kong garrison has released a propaganda video showing a drill of heavily armed troops quelling a protest in a warning to the city’s pro-democracy movement
The three-minute clip is labelled by China as its effort to maintain stability and fight terrorism in Hong Kong. It shows soldiers using various weapons and military vehicles, including tanks
The footage also shows soldiers firing a missile from a ship. In a post on China’s Twitter-like Weibo, the garrison claims that the troops are gathering strength to prepare for war
The PLA garrison (file photo) has issued a video of ‘anti-riot’ exercises and warned violence is ‘absolutely impermissible’
China’s aviation regulator demanded last week that Cathay suspend personnel who engaged in or supported protests in Hong Kong from staffing flights into its airspace. The carrier later suspended two pilots.
Property developers Henderson Land Development, Cheung Kong Holdings and Sun Hung Kai Holdings also took out newspaper advertisement in support of the government on Wednesday.
Forward Keys, a flight data company, said the crisis had deterred people from making travel plans to the city, citing a 4.7 per cent fall in long-haul bookings to Hong Kong between June 16 and August 9 compared with the same period last year.
Statements of apology from protesters were displayed in the airport on Wednesday, promising to allow passengers to depart, to assist medical staff to carry out their duties and not to hinder the work of the press.
‘We are not afraid of facing the issues directly… only afraid of losing your support to the whole movement due to our mistake, and that you give up on fighting.’