"No difference": Hong Kong police are compared to thugs after Yuen Long's violence | News from the world

Hong Kong police have been criticized for indicting protesters at a mbad transit station in Yuen Long, where some were resting or preparing to leave after clashes with police on Saturday.

In scenes that protesters and critics allege would be reminiscent of an attack perpetrated last week by alleged gangs of triads, police fired tear gas and rushed to the station shortly before 10 pm. The team, a special tactical unit, sprayed pepper and hit the batons, causing panic. Some demonstrators tried to defend themselves with fire extinguishers. Bloody gauze and drops of blood could be seen on the floor of the station.

Criticism is preparing as the city prepares for Sunday for its third consecutive day of mbad civilian dissent, after Saturday's rally in Yuen Long and an 11-hour sit-in at Hong Kong Airport on Friday.

The hospital authorities in Hong Kong announced Saturday night that 23 people had asked for medical help, including two in serious condition. Police arrested 11 people on various charges, including unlawful badembly, possession of an offensive weapon and badault.

Images began to circulate online, showing the elite tactical team rushing to the station next to the photos of a group of men in white having stormed the same station the previous Sunday. The alleged triads had chased commuters, some of whom were protesters returned from an anti-government demonstration that day, hitting them with sticks of wood and metal.

"In action, there was no difference," said Simon Cheng, a resident of Yuen Long, 34 years old. "But psychologically, it's worse because they're approved by the government and they have deadly force," he said.

At a press conference held in the early hours of Saturday, police said the protesters were throwing down fire extinguishers on agents downstairs. "We entered the station and controlled the scene," said Chief Superintendent Yolanda Yu Hoi-kwan of the police's public relations department.

Officers were also criticized for using tear gas in the residential areas of Yuen Long, including near old people's homes. Liu said the police had shot residents but none of those houses had been hit. "We also reminded retirement homes to close their windows," she said.

Hong Kong is plunged into a political crisis as citizens take to the streets every weekend for nearly two months to demonstrate against their government.

The protesters prepared Sunday to hold a rally in central Hong Kong to condemn the police, who, according to critics, would have resorted to an increasingly harsh tactic against the protesters. The organizers originally planned to march from central Hong Kong to a district in the west of the country, where police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters last weekend.

Police did not grant a permit for the march – the second time the authorities rejected a protest request – following the ban on Saturday's rally in Yuen Long. On Sunday, one of the organizers of the Yuen Long rally, Max Chung was arrested by police on suspicion of inciting an illegal rally. Protesters fear that the authorities will further adopt this line in the future.

"It is very likely that they will abolish freedom of badembly. We therefore ask people to come because it may be the last time we will hold a peaceful and legal protest in Hong Kong, "said one of the rally organizers.

"I'm sure people are exhausted. It's been two months since the first demonstration … but I guess people will not give up or rest until freedom and democracy are legitimately acquired, "she said. "It will be a long way to go, but everyone in Hong Kong will do what it takes."