Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam warned protesters occupying a city centre university that surrender is the only option for a peaceful resolution to a three-day standoff in her first public comments about the crisis on Tuesday morning
Hong Kong’s chief executive has warned protesters occupying a city centre university that surrender is the only option for a peaceful resolution to a three-day standoff.
Police tightened their siege of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus overnight as around 100 protesters remained trapped in the latest dramatic episode in months of protests against growing Chinese control over the semi-autonomous city.
In her first public comments on the PolyU crisis, Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Tuesday morning urged the remaining protesters to surrender.
‘This objective could only be achieved with the full cooperation of the protesters, including of course the rioters that they have to stop violence, give up the weapons and come out peacefully and take the instructions from the police,’ Lam said.
Dozens of activists had staged a daring break-out on Monday night as fears grew that officers would storm the campus using live ammunition and cause a bloodbath in the latest dramatic episode in months of protests against growing Chinese control over the semi-autonomous city.
The activists used ropes to descend from a bridge at the university on to a motorway below before they were picked up by motorbikes and driven away in a coordinated escape attempt.
Students have been taking part in pro-democracy protests at the university for almost a week, but scenes turned ugly overnight Sunday as riot officers tried to storm in and were met by volleys of napalm bombs and arrows as concourses were set alight to keep them out.
Police were accused of using a ‘sonic weapon’ mounted on top of a truck to make activists sick and disoriented – which they denied – while pictures emerged of what appeared to be a gas canister bomb seized from students.
Hundreds of panicked and exhausted activists began trying to escape the campus on Monday morning, but were met by tear gas, rubber bullets and police batons. Many were arrested, and now face up to 10 years in jail for taking part in what Hong Kong’s rulers have deemed a riot.
It was thought there were still hundreds of mostly-young protesters left on the campus, facing off against armed officers as their commanders and state-run Chinese newspapers mulled the use of live ammunition and snipers to end the demonstration.
Further fiery clashes erupted as protesters attempted to flee the vicinity of Hong Kong’s Polytechnic University yesterday
Students trapped on the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus by police staged a daring escaped by scaling down ropes attached to a bridge and on to a motorway below, before being taken away on bikes
Students fled the university campus amid fears of a bloodbath after police commanders threatened to start using live ammunition after a night of violent clashes on Sunday
Protestors use a rope to lower themselves from a pedestrian bridge to waiting motorbikes in order to escape from Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the police
Students used napalm bombs and bows and arrows against police on Sunday in the worst night of violence of Hong Kong’s protests, prompting many to try and flee on Monday before a feared retribution takes place
Despite the breakout there are thought to be hundreds of people still trapped on the PolyU campus, where they have been protesting for a week demanding democratic reforms in the city-state
Protesters run towards motorcyclists after lowering themselves down a rope from a bridge to a highway, to escape from Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus
Students are carried on to motorbikes and driven away from Hong Kong Polytechnic University after escaping off a bridge
As the students tried to escape, more demonstrators clashed with police in other areas of the city, attempting to draw officers away from the campus and provide the activists with a window of opportunity
Anti-government protesters shoot arrows at the police from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus
Police deploy a water cannon to disperse protesters attempting to march towards Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Pro-democracy protesters march on Salisbury Road towards Polytechnic University as they attempt to draw out police and provide time for students trapped there to escape
Protesters march towards PolyU, which has become a focal point of the six-month-long Hong Kong pro-democracy protests and the scene of some of the most violent clashes so far
Police fire tear gas to protesters in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong, a short distance from the university, on Monday evening
As night fell in Hong Kong, police tightened a siege Monday at a university campus as hundreds of anti-government protesters trapped inside sought to escape
Images circulated on Monday of what appeared to be a gas canister bomb embedded with shrapnel to be used against police trying to clear students out of Hong Kong PolyU
Police were accused of using a ‘sonic weapon’ against protesters (pictured mounted on top of this truck) designed to make them sick and disoriented, although officers denied this, calling it a long-range microphone
Protesters form a human chain to pass items to the frontline during clashes with police as they attempt to march towards Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Protesters form a human chain to pass items to the frontline during clashes with police
Dozens of Hong Kong protesters escaped a two-day police siege at a campus late on November 18 by shimmying down a rope from a bridge to awaiting motorbikes in a dramatic and perilous breakout
Protesters retreat during clashes with police as they attempt to march towards Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hung Hom district of Hong Kong
No turning back: A pro-democracy protester in Hong Kong uses a road sign as a shield during clashes with police
Protesters gather at the Jordan area in Kowloon district as they march towards Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Demonstrators flooded back into other parts of the city on Monday in an attempt to draw the stretched police force out and allow the students an exit.
Police fired tear gas in the Kowloon area of the city, as protesters used umbrellas to deflect the canisters and fires burned in the streets.
Senior government officials said they were trying to de-escalate the situation and urged the protesters to peacefully leave the campus and cooperate with police – advice that seemed certain to lead to arrests and therefore strengthened the protesters’ resolve to resist.
Beijing will not sit back and simply watch if the protests in Hong Kong become ‘uncontrollable’, China’s ambassador to Britain Liu Xiaoming warned at a London news conference on Monday.
‘If the situation becomes uncontrollable the central government would certainly not sit on our hands and watch,’ he told reporters in London, adding: ‘We have enough resolution and power to end the unrest.’
Fears for the students grew as:
- State-run Chinese newspaper Global Times suggested bringing in snipers to use live ammunition against the protesters in an editorial
- Editor Hu Xijin said that police officers ‘should not have to bear legal responsibility’ if protesters are killed
- State-affiliated South China Morning Post described the demonstrators as ‘hardcore mobs’ and ‘rioters’ while saying Hong Kong is ‘on the brink of total breakdown’
- Protesters formed human chains along empty streets in an attempt to ferry supplies to the students
- Parents tearfully begged police to stand aside and let their children leave the campus, but were ignored
- The British Foreign Office said it was ‘seriously concerned’ about escalating violence in the city-state, but was slapped down by Chinese officials for interfering
Police fire tear gas at students attempting to escape from Hong Kong Polytechnic University on Monday, following a night of violent clashes that saw police officers shot with bows and arrows
Hundreds of students are now trapped on the university campus, where some have been protesting for up to a week over China’s control over Hong Kong. Pictured are some students being led away by police
Students spent the night Sunday trying to stop officers entering the campus, but after hours of intense clashes many exhausted activists were desperate to leave and attempted to flee (pictured, captured students are led away)
Groups of protesters from outside the university also attempted to get inside to let the students escape, and were confronted by police wielding batons and firing rubber bullets
A protester who appears to have been shot in the head by a rubber bullet fired by police is placed on a stretcher and taken away from Hong Kong PolyU, which has been the site of intense clashes
Medical staff carry a protester out of the campus of Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) during clashes with police
A fire set by protesters burns at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus in Hong Kong. Staff say a number of chemicals have been stolen by demonstrators and the campus has been heavily damaged
An anti-government protester puts out a fire at Hong Kong Polytechnic University amid clashes with police
Protesters stand on the steps of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University after large parts of the campus were set on fire to prevent officers from entering overnight Sunday
Protesters outside the university hold up British and American flags along with a sign reading ‘save us’ outside the university
The Asian financial center’s work week began Monday with multiple protests that disrupted traffic, while schools remained closed because of safety concerns stemming from the demonstrations.
The protests began in June over a now-defunct bill that would have allowed deportation to mainland China, but have become increasingly violent in recent weeks.
The pitched battle for control of the campus of Hong Kong Polytechnic University has been the center of the most recent developments.
For days, protesters have fortified the campus to keep out the police. Now cornered by police determined to arrest them, they desperately tried to get out but faced a cordon of officers armed with tear gas and water cannons.
An editorial published in the South China Morning Post, which has links to the regime in Beijing, on Monday described the activists as ‘hardcore mobs’ while warning the city is ‘on the brink of total breakdown’.
Anti-government protesters barricaded themselves inside Polytechnic last week. Police surrounded the area on Sunday night and began moving in after issuing an ultimatum for people to leave the area.
The crowd wore raincoats and carried umbrellas to shield themselves from police water cannons.
Riot officers broke in one entrance before dawn as fires raged inside and outside the school, but they did not appear to get very far.
Riot police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters trying to flee the campus of Hong Kong Polytechnic University on Monday morning, after a night of violent clashes
A group of around 100 demonstrators tried to escape the campus at daybreak on Monday, aided by a second group which moved in from outside the police cordon in an attempt to break their lines and allow trapped activists to slip away
Protesters spent most of the night trying to stop police getting into the university but by morning, with many of them exhausted and injured, a large group was trying to escape with help from outside (pictured an arrested protester)
Police have warned that they may start using live ammunition against demonstrators after officers were hit by hails of arrows and petrol bombs overnight, raising fears of widespread bloodshed
Despite earlier reports of a truce between student demonstrators and police at Hong Kong PolyU to allow people to leave, officers fired tear gas and used batons on anyone attempting to flee campus on Monday
Dozens of people were arrested early on Monday with police using batons against people that had fallen to the ground, and kicking some handcuffed activists
Police in riot gear detain protesters amid clouds of tear gas at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University after the worst night of violence in almost six months of demonstrations
A riot police officer points a gun at protesters attempting to escape the campus of Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Chiefs confirmed on Monday that live rounds have been fired, but said nobody had been hit
Fiery explosions were seen as protesters responded with petrol bombs. Police, who have warned that everyone in the area could be charged with rioting, reportedly made a handful of arrests.
Shocking footage showed the moment anti-government protesters hurling petrol bombs alight and causing a police truck to burst into flames.
Police have now declared events at PolyU a ‘riot’ – meaning participation is punishable by up to 10 years in jail.
Fear gripped protesters inside the campus – whose occupation is a twist in tactics by a leaderless movement so far defined by its fluid nature.
One 19-year-old, who gave her name as ‘K’, said there was desperation among those who remained.
‘Some people were crying badly, some were furious, some agonising, because they felt hopeless as we were left no way out of the campus.
‘We don’t know when the police will storm in.’
Protests erupted in several other parts of peninsula Hong Kong, with makeshift barricades across normally bustling shopping streets, the road surfaces strewn with bricks to hamper vehicles.
Police fired tear gas at groups who had gathered in the Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan areas, where they also made a number of arrests.
The unrest has rocked previously stable Hong Kong, tipping the international financial hub into recession and frightening off tourists.
What began as a series of huge, peaceful demonstrations against a now-shelved bill to allow extradition to the Chinese mainland has morphed into calls for democracy and an inquiry into police behaviour.
Violence has worsened this month, with two men killed in separate incidents.
Hong Kong police fought off protesters with tear gas and batons Monday as they tried to break through a police cordon that is trapping hundreds of them on a university campus
A policeman in riot gear points his weapon as protesters try to flee from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong early on Monday, following a night of violent clashes
Anti-government protesters clash with police at Hong Kong Polytechnic University as they attempt to break through a police cordon around the university and escape, after a night spent trying to keep officers out
Police were seen making dozens of arrests on Monday morning as people tried to escape the university, aided by those on the outside who were trying to help them
Officers in riot gear fire tear gas and rubber bullets at students attempting to break out of Hong Kong PolyU after a night of extraordinary violence between demonstrators and police
Hong Kong police fought off protesters with tear gas and batons Monday as they tried to break through a police cordon that is trapping hundreds of them on a university campus
Police could be seen dragging protesters to the floor on Monday as they used batons and boots to subdue them
Officers corner and arrest students fleeing from Hong Kong PolyU after declaring the situation on campus a riot, meaning anyone participating can be punished with up to 10 years in jail
Students carrying umbrellas and upturned tables to protect against police tear gas canisters attempt to leave the campus of Hong Kong PolyU after an night of intense clashes
A female protester is dragged away by riot officers as others are tackled to the floor and arrested following a night of violence
Exhausted demonstrators collapse on the floor inside the university campus after a night of fierce clashes with police
While student activists spent the night trying to keep police off the campus of Hong Kong PolyU, by daybreak many of the exhausted demonstrators were trying to leave, but prevented from doing so
Anti-government protesters flee from the police at Hong Kong PolyU after a night of violence which saw arrows fired at police, and some officers use live ammunition in return
Riot police move in to arrest demonstrators as they try to escape from Hong Kong PolyU in the early hours of Monday
Police chase anti-government protesters as they attempt to flee a university campus where they have been holed up for days as they demand greater autonomy from China
Demonstrators last week engineered a ‘Blossom Everywhere’ campaign of blockades and vandalism, which shut down sections of Hong Kong’s transport network and closed schools and shopping malls.
In his most strident comments on the crisis, Chinese President Xi Jinping said it threatened the ‘one country, two systems’ model under which Hong Kong has been ruled since the 1997 handover from Britain.
On Saturday, dozens of soldiers from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army briefly left their Hong Kong barracks to help clean-up the streets.
It was a rare and symbolic operation, as the troops are normally confined to barracks and are meant to be only called out in a time of emergency.
Chinese defence ministry spokesman Wu Qian on Monday defended the operation, and repeated warnings from Beijing that the military had the ability to quell the unrest.
‘Ending violence and restoring order is the most pressing task we have in Hong Kong,’ Wu said.
Shocking footage shows the moment anti-government protesters hurling mortar bombs alight and causing a police truck to burst into flames in Hong Kong
Rioters are seen throwing petrol bombs at a flyover near Hong Kong Polytechnic University where they held an all-night stand off with authorities
The police truck is then seen retreating as the protesters are positioned behind a make-shift fort with their faces covered
Flames rise from a large fire started by anti-government protesters in a staircase at the main entrance that leads into the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in the Hung Hom district of Hong Kong
Anti-government protesters start a large fire in a staircase at the main entrance that leads into the Hong Kong Polytechnic University
A fire is seen at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) during an anti-government protest in Hong Kong. Protesters set fires as police stormed the university
A riot police vehicle is set on fire during clashes outside Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong, as police looked to storm the campus
In a small – but symbolic – victory for demonstrators, Hong Kong’s high court on Monday said a government ban on facemasks at demonstrations was unconstitutional.
The ban has been widely flouted and police have found it all-but-impossible to enforce.
The use of bows and arrows and catapult-launched gasoline bombs threatened to escalate the violence in the more than five-month anti-government movement.
Earlier, Hong Kong police said they may use ‘live rounds’ if officers continue to face protesters wielding ‘deadly weapons’, the first time in a near-sixth month crisis they have issued the stark warning.
A Hong Kong police officer was hit by an arrow as authorities used tear gas and water cannons to try to drive back protesters occupying a university campus as well as the surrounding streets.
The protests started peacefully in early June, sparked by proposed legislation that would have allowed criminal suspects to be extradited to the mainland.
But by the time the bill was withdrawn, the protests had hardened and broadened into a resistance movement against the territory’s government and Beijing.
Activists see the extradition bill as an example of Hong Kong’s eroding autonomy under Beijing rule since the 1997 handover from colonial power the UK.
An anti-government protester sets fire to the entrance to Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) to stop police from getting inside
Anti-government protesters had barricaded themselves inside Hong Kong Polytechnic University for days, fighting back with petrol bombs and bows and arrows
A policeman in riot gear detains a protester outside of Hong Kong Polytechnic University as police storm the campus in Hong Kong
A huge blaze burned along much of a long footbridge that connects a train station to the campus over the approach to the Cross-Harbour Tunnel
First aiders provide treatment to an injured person during clashes at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong today
Anti-government protesters watch as a large fire is started by other protesters in a staircase at the main entrance that leads into the Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Police in riot gear prepare to fire as they move into the campus of Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong, early Monday
Police fire tear gas at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) in Hong Kong, following days of fierce, bitter clashes
A protester prepares to fire an arrow during a confrontation with police at Hong Kong Polytechnic University today. A police officer was struck in the leg from an arrow fired by an unknown demonstrator
Hong Kong Police Department released images of the media liaison officer’s leg with a arrow sticking out of it after he was struck during clashes with protesters
