force.

The territory’s crucial travel industry has suffered as tourists put off their visits, with Australia, Ireland, Britain and Japan having also issued travel advisories to their citizens.

Hong Kong police say a total of 589 people have been arrested in the protests since June 9, ranging in age from 13 to 76. They face charges including rioting, which allows for prison terms of up to 10 years. Police have fired tear gas, rubber bullets and other projectiles at protesters, with demonstrators responding with metal sticks, bricks, gasoline bombs and carts full of burning debris.

On several occasions, protesters have been attacked by unknown people believed to be linked to organized crime groups, while police took little action to stop them.

The central government in Beijing so far has not visibly intervenedin the situation, though in editorials and public remarks it has condemned demonstrators and protest organizers as criminals, clowns and “violent radicals” and alleged that they have been inflamed by politicians from the U.S., Taiwan and elsewhere.

On Wednesday, the head of Beijing’s Cabinet office responsible for the territory said Hong Kong was facing its “most severe situation” since its handover from British rule in 1997 and the central government was currently considering further measures.

Hong Kong was returned to China under the framework of “one country, two systems,” which promised the city political, civil and economic freedoms not allowed under Communist Party rule on the mainland. However, many Hong Kong residents feel Beijing has been increasingly encroaching on their freedoms.

Pro-democracy protesters said Thursday they plan to hold a demonstration