A LARGE group of radical protesters disrupted the operations of Hong Kong International Airport yesterday afternoon after they charged security cordon lines and damaged airport facilities.

Protesters had been gathering at the bus stops of the airport terminal since 1 p.m. local time. At around 2 p.m., the radical protesters started to charge water-filled barriers, pointed laser beams at the airport authority staff, and blocked roads with trolleys and mills barriers.

They also hurled objects at police officers and airport authority staff. Some radical protesters used iron bars to smash the doors of airport facilities.

Those protesters were participating in an unauthorized assembly, the police said in a statement, adding that since an injunction order was in force at the airport, the protesters might be liable to the offense of “contempt of court.”

At around 3:30 p.m., the police said they would soon conduct a dispersal operation and warned all protesters to leave and stop their illegal acts immediately.

As the protesters left the airport, some black-clad men built barricades to keep police away and paralyze the traffic surrounding the airport.

Train service from and to Hong Kong International Airport was suspended as a large group of protesters had been throwing iron sticks, bricks and stones on the rail since 4 p.m., with some of them even breaking onto the track, the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) said.

After days of disturbance and violence by unlawful assemblies at the airport, the airport authority obtained an interim injunction from the court on Aug. 13 to restrain persons from unlawfully and willfully obstructing or interfering with the proper use of Hong Kong International Airport.

The court extended the interim injunction at the airport Aug. 23 and announced that the order would maintain the status quo until trial or further order of the court.

On Saturday, rioters vandalized government buildings, set large fires on main streets, and paralyzed traffic, causing chaos.

Rioters traveled across Hong Kong’s harbor to the Tsim Sha Tsui district, where they set fires and threw petrol bombs on Nathan Road.

They also set up barricades with trash bins and debris, and paralyzed traffic in Mong Kok and Kwun Tong.

Earlier, rioters threw petrol bombs at government buildings and the Legislative Council (LegCo), before they went on to set fires on a main street near the police headquarters.

Speaking through a spokesperson, President of the LegCo Andrew Leung said he felt extremely distressed and disappointed to see demonstrators storm the LegCo building once again, and sternly condemned the demonstrators for hurling inflammable objects and bricks in disregard of the safety of the people present.

In a statement, the Hong Kong police said that radical protestors set multiple fires on roads in the Wan Chai and Causeway Bay area, posing a serious threat to the safety of everyone, including police officers on site.

At least 40 people had been arrested by the police from Saturday night to the wee hours of yesterday over offenses including participating in unlawful assembly, criminal damage and obstructing the police.  (Xinhua)