[Graphic content] A 14-year-old was shot in the left thigh by a plainclothes police officer on Friday night in Yuen Long, as protests against an anti-mask law erupted across the city.

Photo: Apple Daily.

At around 8pm in Yuen Long, as protesters occupied roads, an off-duty officer approached the scene in a private car. According to Apple Daily, he was suspected of having bumped into a person, and was surrounded by protesters.

In the ensuing chaos, the officer shot a teenage boy in the left thigh. The officer was then beaten by protesters, before a petrol bomb was hurled at him. The officer appeared to drop his gun as he escaped from the fire.

A bullet found at the scene. Photo: Tommy Cheung Facebook.

The officer used his phone to call for help as another Molotov cocktail was hurled at him, according to video footage.

Bloodied, he ran then towards Yuen Long MTR station and asked for help from arriving police vans.

An ambulance was sent to the scene. The boy was sent to Pok Oi Hospital and was conscious when he arrived.

The police said in a statement shortly after midnight that the officer was facing a serious threat to his life and fired one shot in self-defence: “Police warn the rioters to stop all illegal acts immediately and will deploy appropriate force to disperse and arrest rioters.”

Earlier on Friday, the government announced a ban on face masks at protests through emergency legislation – the law became active on Saturday.

It is the second such shooting by an officer this week.

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