This archive report was first published on 29 November 2019.
On Friday, November 29, 2019, Hong Kong police handed over control of Hong Kong Polytechnic University's campus to school officials, bringing an end to a two-week siege that had seen intense clashes between protesters and police.
According to the police, they found no protesters on the campus during a final search on Friday morning, but investigators discovered nearly 4,000 firebombs, other explosive items, and bottles of corrosive liquids.
The protests, which began in June over a proposed extradition bill, had escalated in recent weeks, with universities becoming key battlegrounds. The Chinese University of Hong Kong was occupied by protesters for five days in mid-November, and several other schools saw large demonstrations.
Protesters also set fire to tollbooths near the campus, leading to the closure of a major tunnel linking the Kowloon Peninsula with Hong Kong Island. The police said more than 5,800 people had been arrested in connection with the protests since early June, including nearly 1,500 people over the past two weeks.
Assistant Police Commissioner Chow Yat-ming said there would be no ceremony or event to mark the end of the siege, stating, 'There will not be any ceremony or event to shake hands or stuff like that.'
The protests had quieted dramatically in the days before Sunday's elections for district councils across the city, which saw pro-democracy candidates dominate the vote, taking 87 percent of the seats.
