Tiananmen Square: A look back
The man, calling for an end to the violence and bloodshed against pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square, was pulled away by bystanders, and the tanks continued on their way.
The crackdown on pro-democracy protesters on June 4, 1989, killed hundreds, possibly more. The Chinese government has never fully disclosed what happened on that day and branded the protests a "counterrevolutionary riot."
On the night June 3-4, 1989, Tiananmen Square sheltered the last pro-democracy supporters. In a show of force, China leaders vented their fury and frustration on student dissidents and their pro-democracy supporters.
Several hundred people have been killed and thousands wounded when soldiers moved on Tiananmen Square during a violent military crackdown ending six weeks of student demonstrations, known as the Beijing Spring movement.
They shouted slogans demanding the ouster of Premier Li Peng who declared martial law in the capital May 20.