Hong Kong's government headquarters has reopened as the number of protesters gathered outside dwindled to a few dozen.

The demonstrations persisted into early Tuesday but by midmorning most of the protesters had gone home.

A routine meeting of the Executive Council was called off. Chief Executive Carrie Lam suspended work on the extradition bill that ignited the protests but still faces calls to resign for having sought to push through the legislation, which would allow some suspects to be tried in mainland Chinese courts.

Late Monday, Hong Kong's police commissioner, Stephen Lo Wai-chung, held a news conference where he sought to defuse anger over aggressive police tactics during protests last week. He said only five of 15 people arrested during the clashes were charged with rioting,