We are ending our live updates of Wednesday's protests in Hong Kong that follow the introduction of a controversial new security law imposed by Beijing. Thank you for being with us.

Here's a recap of the day's main events:

• Violent clashes have taken place and police used water cannon, tear gas and pepper spray on demonstrators. One officer was stabbed in the arm by rioters, police said
• More than 300 people were arrested, nine of them under the new legislation which targets secession, subversion and terrorism
• Britain said it would grant up to three million Hong Kong citizens the right to live and work in the UK following China's decision
• Protesters say Beijing wants to erode the territory's freedoms enshrined in law after Britain handed Hong Kong back to China 23 years ago

• China has dismissed the criticism and said it will not allow foreign interference in its domestic affairs

Kerry Allen
BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst

Image source, Global Times

The central Chinese government has been striving to promote the necessity of the new Hong Kong bill today, and its media have been highlighting the multiple arrests that have already taken place today.

But at the same time, mainland-based outlets have been nervous about showing footage of these arrests themselves, because of the presence of pro-democracy slogans.

Media have either pixelated these or avoided showing today's demonstrations altogether, because they don't want mainlanders to see them.

Generally, broadcasters in the country have shied from showing fresh demonstrations today, instead showing footage of senior officials voicing their support for the law, emphasising that it is necessary for the island, and does not violate the “one country two systems” policy.

In footage of demonstrators that is shown, people in mainland China are seeing blurred images of flags and t-shirts over slogans like “Hong Kong independence” and “liberate Hong Kong”.

Critics have called the national security law "the end of Hong Kong" - so what do we know, and what do people fear the most?

Hong Kong was always meant to have a security law, but the government failed to pass it because it was so unpopular. So this is about China stepping in to ensure the city has a legal framework to deal with what it sees as serious challenges to its authority.

The details of the law were kept secret until after it was passed. They include:

• Beijing will establish a new security office in Hong Kong, with its own law enforcement personnel. It can send some cases to be tried in mainland China - although Beijing has said it will only have that power over a "tiny number" of cases

• Hong Kong's chief executive will have the power to appoint judges to hear national security cases, raising fears about judicial autonomy
• Some trials will be heard behind closed doors
• People suspected of breaking the law can be wire-tapped and put under surveillance
• Beijing will have power over how the law should be interpreted, not any Hong Kong judicial or policy body. If the law conflicts with any Hong Kong law, the Beijing law takes priority

• Management of foreign non-governmental organisations and news agencies will be strengthened
• The law will also apply to non-permanent residents and people "from outside [Hong Kong]... who are not permanent residents of Hong Kong".

You can read more about what the law says, and what it means, in this explainer from our reporters Grace Tsoi and Lam Cho Wai.

Martin Yip
BBC Chinese

Image source, Reuters

Over the years people have looked at their British National Overseas (BNO) and Hong Kong SAR (Chinese Hong Kong) passports in a mainly economic perspective.

The Chinese Hong Kong passport is cheaper - HK$370 ($47.74; £38.87) for 32 pages for 10 years, while a 34-page BNO passport costs £105.86.

Both can take you to a good number of countries visa-free, including, until now, a six-month stay in the UK. But oddities like being able to apply for an Australian electronic visa using a Chinese Hong Kong passport, and the type of consulate protection you could get in some less developed countries, does affect Hong Kong people’s perception of the two passports.

Now Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has revealed more details of Downing Street’s offer. BNOs might feel safer as the exit door is cleared up. But that need not mean full peace of mind.

Many issues remain. How to get a job in the UK to begin with, when the whole world is in deep economic trouble thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Image source, AFP

Also, as former prime minister Theresa May once said, “Brexit means Brexit”. Many Brexiteers don’t like migrants. How the British public greets an influx of Hong Kongers could well affect whether they feel comfortable to move there.

China might also retaliate. A pro-Beijing tabloid threatened earlier that China could void BNOs' Hong Kong residency, Chinese citizenship, and most importantly, voting rights. If that turns out to be the case, it would be unnerving.

Images from earlier today show police clashing with demonstrators, firing tear gas and making arrests.

Police say 370 people have been detained - 10 of them under the new national security law.

Image source, Getty Images

In an interview with Associated Press, media tycoon Jimmy Lai has said the territory's new security law has rendered Hong Kong "dead".

"It's worse than the worst scenario imagined. Hong Kong is totally subdued, totally under control," he said.

Mr Lai, 72, is the founder of clothing retailer Giordano and tabloid newspaper Apple Daily. He supported the Tiananmen Square protesters in 1989 and has since become an outspoken advocate for greater democracy in China.

Mr Lai said he will continue to fight for democracy, but in a "very different way". He and 14 other pro-democracy figures are already facing charges for taking part in anti-government protests last year, but he says he is unfazed by the prospect of prison.

"I cannot worry, because you never know what kind of measures they will take against me," said Mr Lai. "It won't be something I can worry about, I'll just relax and do what I have to do."

Hong Kong Police have updated their tally of arrests, saying 370 people were detained during today's protests - 10 of them for breaching the new national security law.

Seven police officers were also injured during the day, including one who was allegedly stabbed by a "rioter". Earlier today, police said the stabbing suspects had fled while onlookers stood by.

Helier Cheung
BBC News

Supporters of the law have argued that it will only affect a small number of people – and is essential to restore stability to Hong Kong.

Starry Lee – from the pro-Beijing DAB party, said the national security law would “give Hong Kong a new chance… to leave behind the violence haze of the past year and start again”.

Meanwhile, legislator Regina Ip – who was Hong Kong’s security chief back in 2003, when the government last attempted to introduce national security legislation - said she welcomed the passing of the law because it filled a “legal gap in Hong Kong’s national security”.

“As part of the country [China], of course Hong Kong has a duty to protect the nation’s security,” she said.

She added that since Beijing announced the national security law in May, some activists who supported independence for Hong Kong had left the territory, or quit political organisations.

“From this, you can see that the national security law does have a deterrent effect – and I believe this will help to calm down the riots of the past year.”

Hong Kong saw sustained anti-government protests – many of which turned violent – in 2019 as demonstrators protested against a law that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China, and demanded democratic reform and an independent investigation into alleged police brutality.

Polls conducted by Reuters news agency, external suggest that a majority of people in Hong Kong (56%) are opposed to the national security law, but that support for pro-democracy protests has slipped from 59% in December 2019 to 51% in June.

Analysts have suggested this could in part be because the new legislation means people no longer see the protesters' demands as practical.

Image source, AFP

Simon Cheng, a former employee of the UK's consulate in Hong Kong who says he was tortured by the Chinese police, has been granted political asylum in Britain.

Mr Cheng, a Hong Kong citizen, was detained for 15 days while on a trip to mainland China in August 2019. During that time he says he was tortured and accused of inciting political unrest in Hong Kong.

You can read the full story here.

Climate campaigner Greta Thunberg has send a message of support for the protests - and in return received thanks from a leading pro-democracy activist.

On Twitter, Ms Thunberg said: "My thoughts are with the people of Hong Kong." She retweeted a post by pro-democracy campaigner Joshua Wong which showed scenes from Wednesday's protests.

In reply, Mr Wong said her support meant a lot "during such a difficult time and critical moment", adding: "Together we are one loud voice that cannot be silenced."

Image source, Getty Images

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said the US is "deeply concerned" about sweeping provisions under Hong Kong's new national security law, and about "the safety of everyone living in the territory, including Americans".

Speaking in Washington, he called Article 38 of the new national law "an affront to all nations". The article allows foreigners to be arrested on arrival in Hong Kong if they are suspected of breaking the law.

"On Monday we announced we would end defence equipment and dual use technology exports of US origin going to the territory. We will continue to implement [US] President Trump's directive to end Hong Kong's special status," Mr Pompeo added.

Helier Cheung
BBC News

One of the most significant developments of the new law is the fact Beijing will establish a new security office in Hong Kong, with its own law enforcement personnel – whose operations will not fall under Hong Kong’s jurisdiction.

Their vehicles will also be exempt from searches by Hong Kong police. Until now, mainland Chinese police were not expected to operate in Hong Kong.

The law also requires the government to “promote national security education” and “strengthen… regulation over matters concerning national security” in schools, universities, the media and the internet – sparking some concerns over academic and media freedom.

In cases that concern national security or state secrets, trials can be held without a jury, or be closed to the media and the public – and the government can issue a binding decision on whether a particular act involves national security, or the evidence involves state secrets.

Eric Cheung Tat-ming, a legal scholar from the University of Hong Kong, wrote online that the law was “even worse than the worst-case-scenario I’d imagined”.

The text of the law was full of mainland Chinese legal characteristics that were “very different from the spirit and letter of Hong Kong’s common law”, he added.

Image source, AFP

Image source, Getty Images

China's new national security law, passed yesterday, gives Beijing powers to shape life in Hong Kong it has never had before. Critics say it effectively curtails freedom of speech and other freedoms enshrined in Hong Kong's mini constitution, known as the Basic Law. China says it will return stability.

There are reports of people deleting Facebook posts, and concerns that candidates opposing the national security law will be disqualified from running in elections.

Many are also afraid Hong Kong's judicial independence will be eroded and its judicial system will look increasingly similar to mainland China's. The city is the only common law jurisdiction in China.

Some pro-democracy activists - such as Joshua Wong - have been lobbying foreign governments to help their cause. Such campaigning could become a crime in the future. He has now quit his Demosisto party.

People also worry that a threat to Hong Kong's liberties could affect its attractiveness as a leading global business hub and economic powerhouse.

Grace Tsoi
BBC World Service, Hong Kong

Image source, Getty Images

I was born in Hong Kong before 1997, the year when Hong Kong was handed back to Chinese rule. That means I had a British National Overseas (BNO) passport as a child.

After years of using the HKSAR passport, I renewed my long-expired BNO passport last year when the city was embroiled in months-long protests. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from renewing the BNO passport, which had always been seen as another travel document available for Hong Kong residents.

When the news broke that BNO passport holders are eligible for British citizenship after living and working in the UK for five years, and after spending another year of being granted settled status, many of my friends were excited. They say at least there’s a way out for Hong Kongers after the national security law came into force.

But many questions remain. Currently there are 350,000 BNO passport holders, but about three million Hong Kong residents are eligible for BNO passports – and that doesn’t appear to include dependants born after 1997. Will the UK be ready to take in so many Hong Kong residents? Will there be enough jobs? Will BNO passport holders have recourse to public funds? And will they be covered by the NHS?

Some also say it’s good that there’s a lifeboat, but do they really want to leave their home?

Image source, Getty Images

Lord Christopher Patten - Hong Kong's final British governor before the 1997 handover - has described China's new national security law as Orwellian.

He told BBC Radio 4's World At One that it "drives a coach and horses through the international treaty that China has signed”.

“The big game starts now," said Lord Patten. "What we’ve seen from China is a doubling down in their aggressive and loutish behaviour all around the world and we’ve really got to work… with allies, not to start a cold war but to form a group of countries who will say ‘if you behave in this appalling fashion, China, we’re going to call you out’.”

“You can lock up people, you can’t lock up ideas," he added. "I still believe that the belief in freedom and the rule of law is going to have a longer lifespan than Xi Jinping’s extremely unpleasant, dictatorial, totalitarian communism.”

Helier Cheung
BBC News

The new law is seen as wide-reaching, and several elements have left Hong Kongers – even those outside the territory – deeply concerned.

Article 38 of the law specifies that the law applies to offences committed outside of Hong Kong – including by people who are not Hong Kong residents.

One British Hong Konger, who asked not to be identified, said she had started deleting posts critical of the government on social media, as she feared she could be targeted next time she travelled to Hong Kong.

“With the new law I feel I have to self-censor everything now. The law is written quite subjectively – you don’t have any idea of what you may do that may break the law.”

“It feels more oppressive than it used to be – especially because my family members are still in Hong Kong and I’m afraid it may affect them as well.”

Meanwhile, a Hong Kong American told me: “I decided to change my Facebook name and switch to Signal after reading the details of the new law.”

“Since it was written in such a way that could apply to my actions abroad, I feel like it was wise to make it more difficult for people to trace my criticism of China and the Hong Kong government back to me, particularly if I were to return to Hong Kong to visit.”

Image source, EPA

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tells MPs that China has enacted the new security law in "a clear and serious breach of the Joint Declaration" between China and Britain.

Hong Kong Police have shared images of documents scattered by protesters around Times Square mall, which they say contain personal information on local officers.

They said they "regret" the action by demonstrators, stressed that a court order banning the doxxing of officers and their families still stands. They also criticised media outlets for publishing images of the documents, saying it was "tantamount to adding more harm to the police."

Grace Tsoi
BBC World Service, Hong Kong

Image source, Getty Images

Hong Kong remains defiant after the national security law took effect.

It was difficult to count how many turned up to the protests in different parts of Hong Kong Island, as most donned neither black clothing, nor gas mask or helmet. They stood in the open streets, near shopping malls and at Victoria Park, but sporadic chanting of slogans ranging from “we will fight until the last breath” to “Hong Kongers, build a nation” were heard – despite the heavy police presence.

However, the chilling effect of the national security law was felt while we were reporting on the ground.

We were trying to talk to some protesters on the streets. Even though we made guarantees that their faces wouldn’t be shown, we were rejected multiple times – it was much more difficult than before.

We finally got lucky with a protester who was wearing a black t-shirt with the words “being born in uncertain times, carries certain responsibilities” and holding a banner over his face.

“I am protesting because I am very angry," he said. "I am angry at the breach of the Basic Law. I am angry at the breach of 'one country, two systems'. And I am angry with the disrespect for human rights this national security law brings.”

But after we were done with the interview, he said he was wondering whether he could be arrested for talking to foreign media – whether this would constitute collusion with foreign forces.

Image source, Getty Images

Nathan Law, a founding member of pro-democracy group Demosisto, is expected to start speaking at a hearing of the US Foreign Affairs Committee about now.

In a statement on Facebook, Mr Law said he will be discussing the impact of the new national security law on Hong Kong.

He added that he risks personal repercussions from the Chinese government for speaking out, but hopes his testimony will raise international awareness of the law and what it means for Hong Kong residents.

"If we lose sight of it at the international level, Hong Kong’s resistance will fall into a more passive situation," said Mr Law. "At the same time, the international community will lack a window to understand the rule of the CCP’s authoritarian system."

You can watch the proceedings here., external