Hong Kong: City-wide protests continue for fourth consecutive day

The anti-government protestors in Hong Kong have brought the city to a standstill for a fourth consecutive day on November 14 encroaching important roadways and highways to obstruct the city. It sparked violence and resulted in the shutting down of several schools. The protestors have set ablaze vehicles and buildings, pelted petrol bombs at police stations and trains and damaged shopping malls over the last week in some of the worst violence seen in more than five months of turmoil.

READ: Hong Kong Endures More Transit Disruptions, More Violence

Protestors block important roads 

The masked protestors and varsity students maintained their blockades of important roads which include the entrance to the Cross-Harbour Tunnel that connects Hong Kong island to the Kowloon area and a highway between Kowloon and the rural New Territories. Riot police fired tear gas near the tunnel early on Thursday to disperse the protestors. According to the international media reports, it impacted not just the university but also the general public. Scores of students barricaded themselves inside the campuses with a makeshift shield to cover themselves up at several universities blocking the entrances and occupying surrounding roads by bricks, petrol bombs, and other makeshift weapons as they expected possible clashes with police. The commuters were stranded at metro stations after few rail services were suspended and 15  stations were closed.

READ: Hong Kong Protest Take A Violent Turn: Tear Gas And Rubber Bullets Used Against Protestors

Lawmakers condemn police actions

The chaotic scenes of the explosion, gun fires, smoke plumes left scores of students injured. The police said the protestors hurled debris and petrol bombs in a nearby highway linking the Northern New Territories with Kowloon, bringing traffic to a halt in a haze of tear gas smoke. The lawmakers of the city condemned the actions of the police and said that the continuous firing of tear gas has turned the university campus into a battlefield. Tensions initially escalated due to the death of a young man who fell from a multi-story car parking during the clashes with the police.

READ: Hong Kong Faces Third Day Of Chaos After Night Of Rage

READ: Hong Kong Universities Become Battlefields As Pro-democracy Protests Continue