
Thousands of uniformed school students, many wearing masks, formed human chains in districts across Hong Kong today in support of anti-government protesters after another weekend of clashes in the Chinese-ruled city.

Students from more than 120 schools throughout the city reportedly joined the collective action, billed as 'the road to freedom', before class started.

Youngsters have gone on school strike and staged human-chain rallies since last Monday in support of the city's anti-government movement.

Thousands of protesters yesterday demonstrated at the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong, urging U.S. President Donald Trump to 'liberate' the city. In response, Hong Kong government warned foreign lawmakers not to interfere in the city's internal affairs.

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Students, alumni and teachers in the Mid-Levels area are pictured taking part in a joint school human chain rally in Hong Kong

The protests, which have gone on for 14 weeks, were initially lit by a now-scrapped plan to allow extraditions to the mainland

Students from more than 120 schools throughout the city joined the collective action today, billed as 'the road to freedom'

Youngsters have gone on school strike and staged rallies since last Monday in support of the city's anti-government protests

Hong Kong has been rocked by an anti-government movement since the beginning of June. The rallies were first sparked by a law bill that would allow criminal suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial. But the city's residents are now demanding for wider democratic reforms.

Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam last week announced the formal withdrawal of the much-hated extradition bill.

But protesters are continuing to urge Lam to respond to all of their five demands, which also include an independent inquiry into alleged police brutality, immediately release of arrested protesters and the right for Hong Kong people to choose their own leaders.

Activist Joshua Wong, a former student movement leader, was released on bail today after being arrested due to an administrative blunder.

The 22-year-old is due to travel to Germany and United States to seek global support for Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement.

The students are calling on the city's authorities to respond to the promises of freedom, human rights and rule of law

Rows of students today joined hands while chanting 'Hong Kong people, add oil' as the school strike enters the second week

Two student protesters are seen wearing masks and helmets while posing for a picture during today's school demonstration

Early on Monday, rows of students and alumni joined hands chanting 'Hong Kong people, add oil', a phrase which has become a rallying cry of encouragement for the protest movement.

In the city's Tsz Wan Shan area, students from more than 10 schools stood hand-in-hand, forming a 2.2-kilometre-long (1.3-mile-long) human chain.

'The school-based human chain is the strongest showcase of how this protest is deep rooted in society, so deep rooted that it enters through the school students,' said Alan Leong, an alumnus of Wah Yan College in the city's Kowloon district.

At a human chain protest outside a college in Kowloon, a teacher was injured by a knife-wielding man while trying to protect students, reported South China Morning Post.

Secondary school students are pictured holding hands as they form a human chain to protest against alleged police brutality

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has withdrawn the much-hated extradition bill, but protesters want all their demands met

One student is seen holding a placard reading 'set up independent inquiry committee' during today's humane chain protest

The students, brandishing posters with the protesters' five demands for the government, called on authorities to respond to the promises of freedom, human rights and rule of law.

University students were also expected to join the human chain protests during the day on their campuses.

One of the five demands - to formally withdraw the extradition bill - was announced last week by Lam but protesters are angry about her failure to call an independent inquiry into accusations of police brutality during demonstrations.

The Asian financial hub witnessed two days of demonstrations at the weekend after protesters rallied at the U.S. consulate and the airport.

Metro stations reopened after some were closed on Sunday amid sometimes violent confrontations, although the mood in the city remained tense.

Students attend a rally to highlight the five demands protesters ask from the government at the University of Hong Kong

Students holds umbrellas and shout slogans as they attend the Occupy University Street rally at the University of Hong Kong

Pro-democracy protesters have continued demonstrations despite the withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill

Two students from the University of Hong Kong hold banners that read 'liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times'

Activists started fires in the street and vandalised a Mass Transit Railway (MTR) station in the main business district of Central on Sunday after thousands rallied peacefully at the U.S. consulate, calling for help in bringing democracy to the special administrative region.

Metro stations reopened after some were closed on Sunday amid sometimes violent confrontations, although the mood in the city remained tense.

In a rare public appearance, Lam walked around the central business district with the city's Transport and Housing Secretary Frank Chan and MTR officials to inspect the damaged station, where she chatted with staff and commuters.

Dressed in a black suit, she examined electronic ticketing machines and boarded up windows smashed the previous day, the public broadcaster RTHK showed.

Following the demonstration at the U.S. consulate on Sunday, Hong Kong's government warned foreign lawmakers not to interfere in the city's internal affairs after thousands of protesters called on U.S. President Donald Trump to 'liberate' the city.

Students hold up their hands to symbolise the five demands protesters are seeking from the government during a rally today

Tens of thousands of students have participated in the city-wide school strike and human-chain protests since last Monday

Students take part in a pro-democracy rally at the University of Hong Kong as they chant 'five demands, not one less'

Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 under a 'one country, two systems' formula that guarantees freedoms not enjoyed on the mainland. Many Hong Kong residents fear Beijing is eroding that autonomy.

China denies the accusation of meddling in the city and says Hong Kong is an internal affair. It has denounced the protests, accusing the United States and Britain of fomenting unrest, and warned of the damage to the economy.

Chinese state media on Monday said Hong Kong was an inseparable part of China and any form of secessionism 'will be crushed'.

The China Daily newspaper said Sunday's rally was proof foreign forces were behind the protests and warned demonstrators should 'stop trying the patience of the central government'.

Protesters in Hong Kong marched to the US Consulate yesterday, calling on President Donald Trump to liberate the city

Thousands of pro-democracy protesters marched from Chater Garden to the US consulate in Hong Kong yesterday morning

A protester wears a mask of U.S. President Trump during a march to the Consulate General of the United States in Hong Kong

Young pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong was released from police custody on Monday after apparently breaching bail conditions following his arrest in August when he was charged along with a number of other prominent activists for inciting and participating in an unauthorised assembly.

A court acknowledged that his arrest on Sunday was caused by an administrative blunder. Wong had been granted permission to travel abroad to attend speeches.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the United States was monitoring events in Hong Kong.

'The freedoms of expression and assembly are core values that we share with the people of Hong Kong, and those freedoms must be vigorously protected. As the president has said, `They´re looking for democracy and I think most people want democracy´,' the official said.

The former British colony is facing its first recession in a decade as the protests scare off tourists and bite into retail sales in one of the world's most popular shopping destinations.

Tourist arrivals plunged 40 per cent in August year on year, said Paul Chan, the city's finance secretary, with sustained clashes leading to main roads being shrouded in teargas and blocked, and the international airport shut down - hitting the tourism, retail and hotel industries.

'The most worrying thing is that the road ahead is not easily going to turn any better,' Chan said in his blog on Sunday, noting that some hotels had seen room rates plunge up to 70 per cent.