WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT! Anger soared in Hong Kong today over a vicious assault on pro-democracy protesters by suspected triad gangsters that left dozens wounded, a dramatic escalation of the political turmoil plaguing the Chinese city. Footage from the attack circulating on social media showed people screaming as the gangsters beat groups of protesters and journalists in Yuen Long station and inside subway trains, leaving pools of blood on the floor. Witnesses said they saw a pregnant woman being beaten to the ground during the chaos and passing out. Paramedics were seen treating the woman, who was believed to be protecting her husband during the attack. She is believed to be in stable condition. Hospital authorities said 45 people were wounded in the assault, with one man in critical condition and five others with serious injuries. 😡 #retract

Hong Kong conflict: The financial hub has been plunged into its worst crisis in recent history by weeks of marches and sporadic violent confrontations between police and pockets of hardcore protesters. An image circulating on Facebook shows a group of men dressed in white brandishing sticks posing for pictures. 😱 #retract

Hong Kong protesters invade the city's airport with signs warning travellers 'not to trust the police or the government'. Several hundred protesters, including flight attendants, converged on the Hong Kong's airport today, calling for democracy and chanting 'free Hong Kong'. Around 200 to 300 demonstrators dressed in black filled the arrivals hall at Hong Kong International Airport - one of the world's busiest airports - and greeted international visitors with chants of 'There are no riots, there's only tyranny!' and handed out flyers. Airport authorities said operations were not be affected, but advised passengers to arrive early given the risk of disruption. #retract

Hong Kong pro-democracy activists defend themselves with UMBRELLAS against tear gas holding as they clash with police in fight against China's extradition laws. Police in Hong Kong fired tear gas on Saturday at protesters who defied authorities' warnings not to march in a neighbourhood where six days earlier a mob apparently targeting demonstrators brutally attacked people in a train station. Protesters wearing black streamed through Yuen Long, even though police refused to grant permission for the march, citing risks of confrontations between demonstrators and local residents. For the protesters, it was a show of defiance against the white-clad assailants who beat dozens of people last Sunday night, including some demonstrators heading home after the latest mass protest in the summer-long pro-democracy movement. 😱 #retract

Riot police fired multiple volleys of tear gas Sunday to disperse pro-democracy protesters close to Beijing's office in Hong Kong, plunging the financial hub deeper into crisis. The clashes are the second consecutive day of violence in a city reeling from weeks of anti-government protests that show no sign of abating. Sunday's clashes took place close to the Liaison Office, which represents Beijing in the semi-autonomous hub and which was pelted with eggs and paint last week. 😱 #retract

Police and protesters had been engaged in a tense standoff for hours after tens of thousands of demonstrators held a series of unsanctioned marches through the city. A group of some 200 protesters had made their way towards the Liaison Office where they met a phalanx of riot police. A second, larger crowd massed in the popular shopping district of Causeway Bay, where they built barricades and took over a main thoroughfare. 😱 #retract

China accuses 'radical' Hong Kong protesters of damaging the city's prosperity during 'revolution like Arab Spring' in unprecedented response following weekend of violence which saw police fire tear gas and rubber bullets. 🔥 #retract

Dozens of Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters appeared in court today after being charged with rioting, setting the stage for further unrest in a weeks-long crisis that has rocked the global financial hub. The announcement last night that 44 people had been charged with rioting - an offence that carries a jail term of up to 10 years - immediately triggered another round of clashes between police and protesters. Supporters continued to voice their outrage this morning as they stood outside court, braving heavy winds and rain, before the proceedings started. 'Release the righteous... no rioters, only tyranny... reclaim Hong Kong, the revolution of our times,' they chanted. #retract

Thousands of Hong Kong civil servants and medics rallied tonight to support protesters and urge authorities to rebuild confidence in the government as escalating protests rock the Asian financial hub. The medical professionals started their rally themed 'Save Lives, Save Hong Kong' in Edinburgh Place, a public square in Central, at about 6pm local time. A Hong Kong nurse has been arrested and charged with rioting over her alleged involvement in a protest on Sunday, sparking outrage in the city, particularly in the medical industry. #retract

Anti-government protesters in Hong Kong erected barricades in a popular shopping district and blocked a major tunnel Saturday evening, as the eighth consecutive weekend of huge rallies draws to a close. Protesters are continuing to defy increasingly stern warnings from China over weeks-long unrest that has plunged the city into crisis. The semi-autonomous southern Chinese financial hub has seen two months of protests and clashes. The movement started as opposition to a planned extradition law, and quickly evolved into a wider movement for democratic reforms. #retract

Thousands of protesters took to Hong Kong's streets again today for two new demonstrations after police fired tear gas at the crowds last night. The Chinese-controlled city has been rocked by months of protests against a proposed bill to allow people to be extradited to stand trial in mainland China. Adding to the tensions, a general strike aimed at bringing the city to a halt is planned for tomorrow and hundreds of the people marching today were heard calling for this to happen. Police said in a statement early on Sunday that they had arrested more than 20 people for offences overnight including unlawful assembly and assault. #retract

Protesters in Hong Kong have used slingshots to hurl rocks and thrown bricks at a police station in the city during another day of demonstrations. Officers also fired multiple rounds of tear gas to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters today and Beijing said it would not let the situation persist. The Chinese-controlled city has been rocked by months of protests against a proposed bill to allow people to be extradited to stand trial in mainland China. Adding to the tensions, a general strike aimed at bringing the city to a halt is planned for tomorrow and hundreds of the people marching today were heard calling for this to happen. After the peaceful demonstrations finished earlier on Sunday, protesters blocked roads in the town of Tseung Kwan O in the New Territories, set up barricades and hurled hard objects including bricks at a police station. #retract

Hong Kong was brought to a standstill on Monday morning as thousands of pro-democracy protesters blocked roads, disrupted trains and cancelled almost 200 flights as a mass strike got underway. Traffic snarled up as activists barricaded the Cross-Harbour tunnel linking Hong Kong island with the mainland, while trains were delayed as demonstrators held the doors of carriages open. Police fired rounds of tear gas at protesters outside Tin Shui Wai police station this afternoon during clashes as demonstrators gathered to rally against the officers' rough treatment of a female protester. Some of the activists had been hurling stones at the police station while others shouted 'triad' in Cantonese at a distance, accusing the police of colluding with gang members. #retract

Police in Hong Kong fired tear gas at pro-democracy protesters today as they defied warnings to cancel a march, while thousands continued a two-day sit-in at the airport. The fresh demonstrations came after the city's leader pledged she would not grant concessions to the protesters as their movement enters its third month. Tear gas was fired at a crowd of some 1,000 people in a brief evening standoff at a commuter rail station in Tai Wai in the northern region of New Territories. In a separate incident, tear gas was fired at protesters who surrounded a police station in the Tsim Sha Tsui district on the northern side of Hong Kong's harbour, opposite Hong Kong Island. #retract

Protesters continued to spill out into the streets of Hong Kong today as they clashed with riot police who fired tear gas in the 10th week of violent showdowns. Anti-government protesters wearing gas masks and wielding home-made shields launched bricks and blocked traffic on Sunday in yet another day of demonstrations that has plunged Hong Kong into its most serious crisis in decades. In a separate incident, protesters gathered outside a police station in Sham Shui Po and stood their ground as they were surrounded by officers wearing protective gear who looked down at them from a tall wall. Police arrested anti-extradition bill protesters amid the chaos, following petrol bombs explosions and make-shift steel used barricades to block off roads. Chants of 'Liberate Hong Kong' had earlier echoed through the streets as more than 1,000 protesters wearing black marched amid a tense atmosphere. 😱👮🏻‍♂️ #retract

Hong Kong protesters have displayed their biggest show of force yet in a mammoth demonstration which saw nearly two million defy the Beijing-backed government and rally against growing Chinese encroachment. A stream of umbrellas snaked through the city streets as the pro-democracy activists marched from Victoria Park, despite police banning the demonstration from leaving the confines of the square. Escalating tensions in the former British colony boiled over last week when authorities clashed with protesters in the territory's airport, which plunged into chaos. But - in the face of increasing anger over excessive police violence and Chinese threats - the rally concluded peacefully and without reports of any flare-ups. Organisers said at least 1.7million people turned out for the demonstration, marking the 11th consecutive weekend of public protests. #retract