Hong Kong: 13 go on trial over 2019 storming of legislature by pro-democracy protesters

Seven admit rioting, while another six face additional charges carrying a maximum sentence of life in prison

A Hong Kong court has began the trial of 13 people over the storming and ransacking of the city’s legislature in 2019, which was an unprecedented challenge to the Beijing-backed government.

It was the most violent episode in the initial phase of the huge pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong that year, with millions marching and staging sit-ins for weeks.