Hong Kongers Hold Vigil in Solidarity With China Protests #shorts.

A small group of young people gathered at a university campus Tuesday in Hong Kong to hold a vigil for victims of a deadly fire in Urumqi.

MORE: Street protests have shaken China since the fire last week in the city of Urumqi that killed 10 people.

A witness to the fire told VOA on Monday that firefighters had difficulty entering the building because of the government's anti-COVID policies.

Chinese police patrolled the capital, Beijing, and China's largest city and financial hub, Shanghai Tuesday, working to prevent the resurgence of protests against the country's COVID restrictions that have also included rare calls for President Xi Jinping to step down.

Both cities were quiet overnight with police out in force, particularly in areas where social media users suggested new gatherings.

China's government eased some of its pandemic rules on Monday, but it also affirmed its commitment to a zero-COVID strategy.

The government made no mention of the demonstrations, the biggest show of opposition to the ruling Communist Party in decades, but the slight relaxation of the rules appeared aimed at quelling the demonstrations.

(AFP)

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