Protests in China against the world's toughest COVID-19 restrictions are dying down because they have had an effect, a top U.S. diplomat said Friday, as Beijing further eased testing and quarantine rules.
Anger over the curbs had fueled dozens of protests in more than 20 cities in recent days in a show of civil disobedience unprecedented in mainland China since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012.
While the easing of some measures appears to be an attempt to appease the public, Chinese authorities have also begun to seek out those who have been at the protests.