Hong Kong police have fired the first shot since the beginning of a series of pro-democracy protests that have lasted all summer in defiance of China’s communist regime.
Lawmakers Claudia Mo, James To, and Au Nok-hin said the protester was shot in the Tsuen Wan district of northern Hong Kong, according to the New York Times.
Police superintendent Yolanda Yu Hoi-kwan said the officer “felt his life was under serious threat.”
“The round hit an 18-year-old, and the area near his left shoulder was injured, and he was conscious when taken to Princess Margaret Hospital,” she said. “The police force really did not want to see anyone being injured, so we feel very sad about this. We warn rioters to stop breaking the law immediately, as we will strictly enforce the law.”
The shooting comes as protesters gathered to counter march a Beijing-controlled celebration of 70 years of Chinese Communist Party power. President Trump took to Twitter Tuesday morning to congratulate President Xi Jinping for the country’s anniversary.
“Congratulations to President Xi and the Chinese people on the 70th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China!” he said.
Congratulations to President Xi and the Chinese people on the 70th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2019
Hong Kong police have escalated tensions recently, adopting China’s description of protests as potential terrorism.
“The extent of violence, danger and destruction have reached very serious conditions,” Hong Kong’s secretary for security John Lee said earlier this month. “Radical people have escalated their violent and illegal acts, showing elements of terror.”
Hong Kong police have arrested pro-democracy leaders as a part of “unlawful” assemblies in an attempt to squelch dissent.
Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued a statement condemning the shooting by police and denouncing the Chinese communist regime for the violence in Hong Kong.
“Today Chinese tyrants celebrated 70 years of communist oppression with their typically brutal symbolism: by sending a police officer to shoot a pro-democracy protester at point-blank range,” he said Tuesday. “The freedom-seekers in Hong Kong mourn this anniversary, and the American people stand with them against those who deny their God-given dignity.”
