A Hong Kong court said it will deliver its verdict in media tycoon Jimmy Lai's national security trial at a later date, after closing submissions concluded on Thursday, in a case that has drawn global attention as a test of the rule of law in the Chinese-ruled financial hub.
The 156-day trial, which began in December 2023, has become the most high-profile example of China's crackdown on rights and freedoms in the Asian financial hub under a sweeping national security law that was imposed after mass pro-democracy protests in 2019.
When asked to give an indication of the verdict date, one of the three judges Esther Toh said this would be announced "in good time." The 77-year-old Lai, who is the founder of the now-shuttered pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, and a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material.
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