Hong Kong is reeling after a large gang of men in white shirts brutally beat dozens of people inside a train station in a shocking new twist to the city's summer of protest.
Six men have been detained, some with gang links, police said, without elaborating. The sudden attack, which came as a massive protest was winding down Sunday night, has spurred speculation about the men's backgrounds, motivations and possible political ties.
What is known so far:
WHAT HAPPENED?
Some of the attackers wore face masks, while others did not. All were clad in white, in contrast to the protesters' black, and armed with wooden poles and steel rods — weapons that they seemed to swing indiscriminately at residents making their way home at the end of a long day.
They descended on Yuen Long station a little more than an hour before midnight, apparently targeting pro-democracy demonstrators but hitting others as well.
By the time police arrived, they had fled, leaving blood stains on the platform. Forty-five people were injured, including a man left in critical condition.
WERE THEY GANGSTERS?
Hong Kong police detained six men on Monday in connection with the attacks. Some came from rural parts of Yuen Long. They ranged in age from 24 to 54, and their occupations included drivers, hawkers and renovation workers, senior police official Chan Tin-chu said.
"Some of them have triad backgrounds," he told reporters, referring to organized crime syndicates that hold sway over certain neighborhoods in Hong Kong.
T. Wing Lo, an organized crime expert at the City University of Hong Kong, said the scale of the attack indicated that it was likely organized by a triad that, with the promise of payment, rounded up people in the rural area to participate.
The area around Yuen Long station is primarily controlled by two triad groups called Wo Shing Wo and 14K, Lo said, adding that the groups generally don't allow others to commit crimes in their territory.
WHY DID THEY DO IT?
It's all about the money.
Lo said the going rate for an attack like Sunday's could be as much as 10 million Hong Kong dollars ($1.28 million). Most of it would go to the triad leaders, while the actual perpetrators might make 2,000 Hong Kong dollars ($250) for their work.
In the past, triad members have been linked to attacks both against pro-democracy movements and in support of them. Thugs suspected of belonging to triad groups beat up protesters during Hong Kong's 2014 Occupy Central demonstrations, and in an earlier era, they helped 1989 Tiananmen Square activists flee mainland China — all for a price.
"The Hong Kong triad only works for money, not for political ideology," Lo said. "They will work for anyone."
WHO PAID THEM?
Because the deals are arranged through a middleman, the actual commissioners of triad actions often remain unknown.
Hong Kong's leader, Carrie Lam, has dismissed allegations of collusion between the thugs and the police, who some Hong Kong residents have accused of deliberately failing to intervene during the attack.
Lynette Ong, a political science professor at the University of Toronto who has written about China's "thugs-for-hire," said governments have hired gangsters to attack protesters elsewhere, though it is unclear who instigated the Yuen Long assault.
"The fact they were sent to beat up protesters — it has to be someone who wants the protests to stop," Ong said.
Associated Press writers Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Elaine Kurtenbach in Bangkok and Ken Moritsugu in Beijing contributed to this report.
DETROIT (AP) — The Oakland Athletics no longer have to wonder where they'll play the next few seasons. That won't make the long goodbye any easier.
The A's reacted to the announcement that this will be their last year in Oakland with a mixture of sadness and relief.
“At least as a player, you know where you’re headed,” outfielder Seth Brown said Friday before a game against the Tigers in Detroit. “There’s obviously a lot of moving parts, a lot of stuff we’re not privy to, so it’s just been kind of a waiting game on our end. Where are we going to go? Where are we going to be? So I think just having that knowledge -- at least we know where we’re going to be playing next year.”
Vivek Ranadivé, who owns the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher announced Thursday that the A’s will temporarily relocate to West Sacramento's Sutter Health Park for at least three seasons. The A's are moving to Las Vegas after a new ballpark is constructed.
The River Cats, who are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants, will continue to play at the same facility.
Fisher was unable to reach an agreement with Oakland city officials on extending the lease at Oakland Coliseum, which expires at the end of this season. The A's have played in the city since 1968.
“There's direction now, which we've talked a lot about,” Oakland A's manager Mark Kotsay said. “We've got time to kind of reflect on what this really means from an organizational standpoint, the history that we've had in Oakland, with this being now the final season. There's a lot of emotion that goes behind this.”
It will not only cause some upheaval for the players and staff but also members of the organization that work behind the scenes.
“At the end of the day, we know where we're going to be for the next three seasons after the finish this year and that in itself gives a little bit of stability,” Kotsay said. “At the same time, in the present, it's challenging in certain ways to think about the finality of this organization in Oakland.”
Sacramento will be a much smaller environment to house a major league team. Ranadivé said the River Cats venue currently seats 16,000 when counting the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only.
First baseman Ryan Noda is concerned with the facilities. He's hopeful that significant upgrades will be made, much like the Toronto Blue Jays did at Buffalo's Triple-A facility. The Blue Jays played at Buffalo's Sahlen Field in 2020 in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“New walls, new dugouts, new locker rooms — everything they needed to become a big league stadium,” said Noda, who played some games in Sacramento as a minor leaguer. “As long as we can do something like that, then it'll be all right. But it's definitely going to be different than playing in stadiums that hold 40,000 people.”
Kotsay is confident the upgrades will occur.
“I know it will be of major league baseball quality,” he said. “It's has to be of major league baseball quality. I know the Players Association will make sure that takes place, as they did in Buffalo.”
For the rest of this season, the A's will have to deal with small home crowds and disappointed fans.
“We’re sad for the fans, the diehard fans, who always come to our games, always support us, always support the boys wearing the jersey,” Noda said.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, center, shakes hands John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics, before the start of a news conference where Fisher announced his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4 2024.The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics baseball team, announces that his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
Sutter Health Park, home of the Triple A team Sacramento River Cats, is shown in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The Oakland Athletics announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
Oakland Athletics manager Mark Kotsay walks to the dugout after making a pitching change during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
