Authorities in China are tightening security across the country, following days of protests against their zero covid policy.
Demonstrations have taken place in cities including Shanghai and Beijing – as protesters call for Xi Jinping’s removal.
A large presence of officers in Beijing on Monday night prevented a repeat of the previous evening, which saw rare open dissent against President Xi Jinping’s ongoing COVID-zero restrictions.
The police response comes after protests erupted across 17 provinces over the weekend, with protesters calling for an end to constant PCR testing and lockdowns.
Top US officials who have been closely monitoring the unrest in China have been clear in the past few days: that the Biden administration supports any people’s right to peacefully protest and that it simply does not see China’s so-called zero-Covid policy as a sound approach.
“We have to be very careful of not creating a distorted reality,” the official said.
