Hong Kong protesters clash with police again, while others are attacked by mob
Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Hong Kong for the seventh weekend in a row. Police and protesters clashed in new violence in the Chinese-controlled territory as the political crisis there deepens and the city seemingly spirals further out of control.
Protesters clad in black again blocked roads and squared off with police in a standoff that lasted for about 90 minutes. It was an ebb and flow between sides with police firing several rounds of tear gas and rubber bullets before protesters left.
At the same time, new violence erupted near Hong Kong's border with mainland China. Videos showed a mob of men dressed in white – believed to members of Hong Kong's Triad gangs – beating pro-democracy protesters and passengers in a subway station with sticks and bats.
The use of gangs is a common tactic in mainland China to take action while avoiding the use of police. The area where this happened strongly supports Beijing and residents there complained it took an hour for police to respond. Nearly 50 people were injured.
What started as anger over a contentious extradition bill backed by Beijing has now evolved into a bigger war over Hong Kong's freedoms and future.
Beijing's top office in Hong Kong is a symbol to many of China's growing power there. Sunday night, protesters defied police orders, marched there and defaced the building. The government has condemned all this weekend's violence and vowed to bring those responsible to justice.
