Yang Guang, a spokesperson for the Chinese State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, expressed "deep indignation and strong condemnation" Monday at recent petrol bomb attacks that struck several police stations across Hong Kong, which has been hit by months of demonstrations against the city's Beijing-backed government. He praised the performance of police, some of whom were reportedly injured in the attacks, and escalated the official rhetoric against the protests.

"In the past few days, Hong Kong's radical demonstrators have repeatedly attacked police officers with extremely dangerous tools, which already constitutes serious violent crimes and has begun to show signs of terrorism," Yang said.

"This is a gross violation of the rule of law and social order in Hong Kong," he added, arguing that "violent crimes must be resolutely cracked down in accordance with the law, without hesitation or mercy."