Explosives found with HK rioters

HONG KONG (Global Times) — The Hong Kong police on Saturday arrested three people suspected of testing explosives with remote controls in an operation in Tuen Mun.

From bricks, petrol bombs to semi-automatic pistol and remote-controlled bombs with sharp nails, rioters are upgrading their weapons, posing severe threat to social security and putting residents’ life in danger.

“The escalation of violence not only poses a threat to law enforcement personnel, but also causes great harm to Hong Kong residents,” said Po Chun-chung, chairman of Defend Hong Kong Campaign.

This is not the first time that explosives were found in Hong Kong. Two home-made bombs containing a large quantity of ammonium nitrate and many sharp nails were found on 9 December in Wah Yan College, a secondary school in Wan Chai.

The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau (EOD) estimated that the two bombs were capable of causing casualties in a range of up to 50 to 100 meters in the surrounding area.

Based on the current findings from intelligence gathering and investigation, police suspected that the discovery of the bombs is not a single case and some criminals are planning to cause casualties in the community with firearms and explosives.

In an operation on 8 December, police seized a semi-automatic pistol and over 100 bullets suspected to be used by radicals in a demonstration. Police are now tracing the source of the ammunition and the concerned criminal group.

During the past six months, rioters have been upgrading their weapons. They took university campuses to make weapons, including fire bombs, slings and gas cylinder bombs.