Hong Kong police on Saturday ordered additional train services and gave protesters time to leave Yuen Long – a new tactic to avoid a repeat of bloody confrontations at a Sha Tin shopping centre two weeks ago. About 90 minutes after tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside Nam Pin Wai village, removing fences from roads, vandalising police vehicles and attacking officers with bricks, umbrellas and iron poles, the force ordered a dispersal operation at 5pm and fired the first round of tear gas, followed by many more rounds and sponge grenades.
The tension and confrontation between protesters and police initially eased at around 6.30pm with officers pushing their cordon lines back. Protesters even negotiated with riot police, asking them not to block roads to the railway stations or trap them in shopping centres.
The tension and confrontation between protesters and police initially eased at around 6.30pm with officers pushing their cordon lines back. Protesters even negotiated with riot police, asking them not to block roads to the railway stations or trap them in shopping centres.
