UK police set probe of alleged protester assault inside Chinese consulate

British Prime Minister Liz Truss's spokesman yesterday said an apparent assault of a protester inside the grounds of the Chinese consulate in Manchester was concerning after a video emerged of him being beaten by several men.

UK police announced a probe into the incident after video footage was posted on social media. The footage posted on Twitter showed a gray-haired man in a mask kick and tear down protesters' banners and scuffles at the gates of the consulate.

Police were seen intervening to break up the fighting.

"These reports are obviously deeply concerning," Truss's spokesman said.

"I understand Greater Manchester Police responded immediately to the incident. I am conscious that their inquiries are ongoing so it would be inappropriate for me to comment beyond that."

The BBC reported that Bob, an activist from Hong Kong, said he was attacked by unidentified men who came out of the consulate.

Consulate staff had previously asked the protesters to move to the opposite side of the street.

A Chinese web user, who watched the footage said on Weibo that the protester was pushed to the consulate when police tried to separate the two sides of people. The consulate staff tried to push the protester out, but the protester held on to the leg of one of the staff.

Another commenter said the consulate staff was trying to "teach him a lesson."

Police said they were "aware of an incident that took place at around 3pm on Sunday."

They said its officers "responded immediately to defuse the situation."

The protest took place as China opened its Communist Party Congress, which happens every five years.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said in Beijing: "We are not aware of the situation you described.

"Chinese embassies and consulates in the UK have always abided by the laws of their country of residence, and we also hope that the British side will facilitate the normal duties of Chinese embassies and consulates."

The newly appointed chair of parliament's foreign affairs committee, Alicia Kearns, tweeted that interior and foreign ministers Suella Braverman and James Cleverly "need to urgently investigate."

MP Iain Duncan Smith, former Conservative Party leader, was among those sharing the footage, called on the UK government to "demand an apology" from the Chinese ambassador.

Hong Kong activist Nathan Law Kwun-chung, who has fled to the UK, tweeted: "If the consulate staff responsible are not held accountable, Hongkongers would live in fear of being kidnapped and persecuted."

Law called on Cleverly and Braverman to investigate and "protect our community in UK."