Most protesters left Hong Kong airport tonight on the second day of protests that caused numerous flight cancellations and other disturbances at the airport.
The police briefly intervened during the evening, after which the situation calmed down.
Police officers used pepper spray in an attempt to disperse protesters who blocked the entrance to the terminal with luggage carts.
Several people were taken by the police to a police van at the airport.
Demonstrators, on the other hand, caught two people on suspicion of being undercover agents, reports AP.
During the day, flights were operated for a short time, and then all the remaining ones were canceled, and the leader of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam, warned that the protesters had turned the situation "on a path of no return".
The airport management announced that the functioning of the airport was seriously disrupted.
Demonstrators in Hong Kong still caused major problems in air traffic today, as they occupied the terminals of the international airport in that city for the second day in a row and forced the authorities to cancel all remaining flights.
The protesters, among other things, are demanding democratic reforms and an independent investigation into what they claim is police brutality against protest participants in the autonomous Chinese territory.
The protests began in June, due to the suspended extradition bill that provides for the extradition of suspects to Beijing.
Opponents of that law state that it represents a threat to Hong Kong's freedoms, guaranteed for the next 50 years since 1997, when Great Britain handed over the territory to China.
Trump hopes no one gets hurt
US President Donald Trump said today that the situation in Hong Kong is "difficult", expressing the hope that the crisis will be resolved peacefully and that "no one will get hurt".
"I hope that it will be resolved peacefully and that no one will be hurt or killed. The situation in Hong Kong is difficult, very difficult. We will see what happens," Trump told reporters.
Why are Hong Kong citizens protesting?
The blockade of the airport and the protests that have been going on since June were organized because many Hong Kong residents see an increasing erosion of the freedoms that were promised to them in 1997, when China, under the leadership of the Communist Party, took over the territory, which was once a British colony, writes AP, reports Tanjug. .
Those suspicions are fueling the protests, which build on a previous opposition movement that paralyzed much of the city for seven weeks in 2014.
That movement eventually faded, and its leaders were jailed on charges of public harassment.
The central government in Beijing has characterized the current protest movement as bordering on "terrorism" and posing an "existential threat" to the local population.
The terminology used by the Chinese government, according to AP, increases the chances of greater violence and the possible suspension of legal rights for detainees.
Meanwhile, Chinese police have begun drills just across the border in the city of Shenzhen in what some see as a threat to increase force against mostly young protesters who have been gathering over the past 10 weeks.
Police have arrested more than 700 protesters since the beginning of June and said they have infiltrated the ranks of protesters, leading to concerns that officers are inciting violence, according to the AP.
Dozens of people were injured during the clashes on Sunday.
Police said they are investigating the incident.
Rupert Colvij, a spokesman for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, said her office had reviewed evidence that police were using "less lethal weapons in ways that are prohibited by international norms and standards."
This includes the use of tear gas in crowds, in closed spaces and directly at protesters, "which creates a significant risk of death or serious injury," Kolvij said.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said instability, chaos and violence had put the city on a "road of no return".
The protesters show no sign of giving up their campaign to force the Carrie Lam administration to meet their demands, including that she resign and completely scrap a proposed law that would have sent some suspects to mainland China, where critics say could face torture and unfair or political trials, AP points out.
Hong Kong was a British colony for more than 150 years, one part of it, Hong Kong Island, was annexed to Great Britain after the war in 1842, writes the BBC.
Later, China leased the rest of Hong Kong – the New Territories – to the British for 99 years.
It became a busy trading port, and its economy flourished in the 50s, when it became a factory hub.
In the early 80s, as the deadline for the 99-year lease slowly expired, Great Britain and China began negotiations on the future of Hong Kong, the communist government in China believed that all of Hong Kong should be returned.
The two sides reached an agreement in 1984, according to which Hong Kong would return to China in 1997, under the principle of "one country, two systems".
This meant that, although it would become part of a single country with China, Hong Kong would enjoy "a high degree of autonomy, except in foreign affairs and defense" for the next 50 years.
As a result, Hong Kong has its own legal system and borders, and rights, including freedom of assembly and freedom of speech, remain protected, according to the BBC.
Hong Kong's leader, the chief executive, is currently chosen by a 1.200-member board – a largely pro-Beijing body.
Hong Kong voters do not directly elect all 70 members of the territory's legislative body, the Legislative Council.
Most seats that are not directly elected are held by pro-Beijing MPs.
Some elected members were even dismissed after Beijing issued a controversial court ruling that effectively disqualified them.
Hong Kong's mini-constitution called the Basic Law claims that eventually both the leader and the Constitutional Council should be elected in a more democratic way, but there is no consensus on what that should look like.
In 2014, the Chinese government said it would allow voters to choose their own leaders from a list approved by a pro-Beijing board, but critics called it a "fake democracy" and it was not voted into law in Hong Kong.
In 28 years, in 2047, the Basic Law expires, and it is not clear what will happen to Hong Kong's autonomy after that, writes the BBC.
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