Protesters stand in front of a flight display board showing cancelled flights as they occupy Hong Kong Chek Lap Kok International Airport in Hong Kong, China, 12 August 2019. According to media reports, the Airport Authority said it is virtually shutting down the airport, one of the busiest in the world, as thousands of protesters occupied both the arrival and departure halls of Chek Lap Kok. Hong Kong has been gripped for weeks by mass protests, which began in June 2019 over a now-suspended extradition bill to China and have developed into an anti-government movement. EPA-EFE/LAUREL CHOR
Hong Kong airport authorities on Tuesday suspended all check-ins, but reversed a previous statement saying that all departing flights had been cancelled as pro-democracy protesters blocked the facility.
“Terminal operations at Hong Kong International Airport have been seriously disrupted, and all check-in processes have now been suspended,” a statement on the airport website said.
“All passengers are advised to leave the terminal buildings as soon as possible.”
The statement did not clarify how many flights would be cancelled and whether arriving flights would be affected by the decision.
The statement walked back a previous announcement that said all departing flights had been cancelled.
The decision came after thousands of pro-democracy protesters flooded into the airport for the second consecutive day and blocked passengers from reaching entrances to the departure area in both terminals.
It came a day after authorities announced the unprecedented complete cancellation of all arriving and departing flights over a massive rally.
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