An elite special squad of 80 riot control specialists will be sent to the streets of Hong Kong, where transport collapse has been observed for the third day in a row due to another escalation of anti-government protests, the South China Morning Post reports citing informed sources.
The detachment, as noted, will be formed from scratch on a voluntary basis, it will include specialists trained to suppress riots and unrest in prisons.
According to a newspaper source in law enforcement, the special squad will mainly provide protection for important city facilities, including government buildings, and will not be involved in the fight against unrest directly on the streets. These measures will allow ordinary police units, which are already struggling to cope with numerous riots in different parts of the city, to send more forces to the forefront.
The newspaper notes that the head of Hong Kong’s administration this week may announce an unprecedented move that, under public order law, allows it to authorize the police commissioner to appoint “special constables.”