Since the clashes on Monday, questions have been raised about why the police stood by for hours as demonstrators laid siege to the walls of the building, then retreated when it became clear that they had breached the legislature’s inner chamber. Hours later, after most of the protesters had left, the police used tear gas to disperse the remaining crowd outside.

In a statement on Wednesday, the police said that a physical confrontation within the Legislative Council’s confined space could have had “unpredictable” consequences. The police have come under intense criticism for using tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters on June 12.

While leaders in Beijing and Hong Kong have condemned the mostly young protesters who stormed the legislature on Monday as “extreme radicals,” many demonstrators who had not joined them said they condemned the vandalism but understood those protesters’ frustrations.