Tanks back on China’s streets in Covid protests crackdown
TANKS are on Chinese streets as the communist regime ramps up its crackdown on protests against President Xi Jinping’s disastrous zero-Covid policy.
Video shows a steady stream of armoured vehicles trundling through the eastern city of Xuzhou.
The footage from Monday night will rekindle memories of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, where hundreds – if not thousands – of Chinese
‘Millions living under strict lockdown’
protesters were killed by mechanised forces. Mr Xi’s officials have ramped up their crackdown on demonstrators, with police officers seen wrestling with protesters before dragging them away.
Dramatic video shows a woman screaming as she is arrested by six police officers and removed from a main square in Hangzhou.
A man is seen trying to stop the police from arresting her but two officials were seen running at him and shouting at him to get back.
Footage also shows a huge crowd trying to stop a group of police officers from arresting two men in the same city. But the officers succeed in taking the two demonstrators away while holding the scruff of their collars. Locals in Xuzhou questioned whether the tanks were heading to Shanghai but others said it was possible they were returning from manoeuvres. Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets since the weekend in protests fuelled by anger over the unrelenting lockdowns as well as deep-rooted frustrations over China’s political direction. They mark the largest anti-government demonstrations since Tiananmen.
Chinese officials have ramped up their crackdown against the protests in the wake of the western media’s coverage of Xi’s rule being criticised over his ‘zero-Covid’ policy. The approach has resulted in millions of people living under strict lockdowns for months.
But despite the heavy police presence, some protesters defiantly continued to protest last night. In Shanghai, around six police officers were seen surrounding an activist, who was heard shouting for help. He was taken away.
In the north- eastern city of Jinan, a group of protesters clashed with hazmat- wearing officials. The demonstrators were seen picking up a road block.
A number of protesters have been detained by police – including journalist Edward Lawrence – but it is difficult to know how many due to a crackdown on independent media outlets.
Mr Lawrence, a camera operator for the BBC’s China Bureau who was covering the protests, was arrested and beaten by police officers. Chinese officials later made the bizarre claim that he was detained for his ‘own good’.