Hong Kong police arrested 45 pro-democracy protesters in the early hours of Wednesday, using pepper spray on those who resisted, as they cleared a major road in the Asian financial center that had been barricaded with concrete slabs.
Hundreds of Hong Kong police used sledgehammers and chainsaws on Tuesday to tear down barricades erected by pro-democracy protesters near government offices and the financial centre, reopening a major road for the first time in two weeks.
Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying defied pro-democracy protesters' demands to step down by Friday, and repeated police warnings that the consequences would be serious if they sought to surround or occupy government buildings.
Riot police advanced on Hong Kong democracy protesters in the early hours of Monday, firing volleys of tear gas after launching a baton-charge in the worst unrest there since China took back control of the former British colony two decades ago.
