Hong Kong braced for more mass protests over the weekend, even as China warned it could use its power to quell demonstrations and U.S. President Donald Trump urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet personally with the protesters to defuse weeks of tensions.
Hundreds of China's People's Armed Police (PAP) on Thursday conducted exercises at a sports stadium in Shenzhen, which borders Hong Kong, after the U.S. State Department said it was "deeply concerned" about the movements, which have prompted worries that the troops could be used to break up protests.
Ten weeks of confrontations between police and protesters have plunged Hong Kong into its worst crisis since it reverted from British to Chinese rule in 1997 and presented the biggest popular challenge to Xi in his seven years in power.