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Tear gas fired as Hong Kong police, protesters clash

An estimated 210,000 people made a human chain across Hong Kong in the latest anti-government protest, whilst the outdoor community emulated the scenes on top of Lion Rock.

Tear gas fired as Hong Kong police, protesters clash

Thousands of demonstrators marched through an industrial area, where they were blocked by dozens of riot police with shields and batons (Photo: AFP)

Tens of Thousands of people on Friday gathered on top of Hong Kong’s Lion Rock to shine lights across the city in solidarity with the city which has been shaken by anti-government protests for almost three months.

An estimated 210,000 people made a human chain across Hong Kong in the latest anti-government protest, whilst the outdoor community emulated the scenes on top of Lion Rock.

“This is not a protest,” one of the Lion Rock gathering organisers, the South China Morning Post reported.

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“A lot of people put effort into the Hong Kong Way. We thought a lot of trail runners and nature lovers wanted to support the event but not go to the Hong Kong Way itself.”

Earlier today, thousands of demonstrators, many wearing hard hats and gas masks, marched through the industrial Kwun Tong area, where they were blocked by dozens of riot police with shields and batons outside a police station.

Tears gas swept across the road as protesters retreated, leaving a trail of broken bottles and at least one small fire in their wake.

Several of the black-clad protesters were detained as officers swept through.

Hong Kong’s police force have become the target of the protesters’ ire for their perceived heavy-handed response to the months of demonstrations.

The city had appeared to have pulled back from a nosedive into violence, with the last serious clashes taking place a week and a half ago just after the city’s airport was paralysed by demonstrators.

Police chased hundreds of protesters, holding a line underneath a bridge but threatening a new charge.

One of the protesters told AFP, “I’ve never seen Hong Kong in such a situation”.

“The youngsters who come out have put their future at stake… they are doing this for Hong Kong.

Protests started against a proposed law that would have allowed extradition to China, but have bled into wider calls for democracy and police accountability in the semi-autonomous city.

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