Petrol bombs thrown and tear gas fired as tension grows during Hong Kong's 16th weekend of protests

• Blockades set up in northern town of Tuen Mun, after approved march quickly descends into violent clashes
• Sit-in planned for later in Yuen Long, two months after mob attack on commuters and protesters

Hong Kong entered its 16th straight weekend of protests on Saturday with a march in Tuen Mun.

The event, approved by an appeal board after an initial police objection, is about livelihood issues, the organisers say. They plan to target so-called dama, middle-aged women seen as a public nuisance by local residents irritated by their song-and-dance performances in neighbourhood parks.

Elsewhere, protesters plan a sit-in at Yuen Long MTR station on Saturday night to mark two months since gangs of men wearing white attacked commuters, including black-clad demonstrators returning from a mass rally.

Earlier in the day, a citywide campaign by pro-Beijing groups to remove anti-government posts on so-called Lennon Walls attracted a much smaller turnout than expected. Protesters did not show up at the murals to confront their opponents, but returned in the afternoon to replenish the walls with posts and even flowers. Others are expected to make a comeback at the protest in Tuen Mun in the afternoon.

Reporting by Mimi Lau, Sarah Zheng, Sum Lok-kei, Kimmy Chung, Danny Lee, Karen Zhang and Dewey Sim

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