Under shroud of secrecy US weapons arrive in Yemen despite Congressional outrage - CNN

The distinctive shape of the US-made Oshkosh armored vehicle stands out in the early morning darkness, a piece of military hardware that is currently at the heart of a standoff between some American lawmakers and President Donald Trump's administration.

Aden is controlled by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, whose main partners are continuing to ship American-made weapons into the country despite bipartisan outrage in Congress over the way the US is backing Riyadh in this bloody and bitter conflict.

This footage showing the unloading of a variety of US-made arms -- which was filmed illicitly at the offloading site, then obtained and verified by CNN -- is itself contentious. Multiple witnesses told CNN that Yemeni authorities, backed by the Saudi-led coalition, have been arresting and questioning those they suspect of leaking it to the media.

Using whistleblower accounts and port documents CNN has identified the ship which offloaded the US weaponry in Aden last week as the Saudi-registered Bahri Hofuf. Looking at tracking data, the vessel's last recorded location was in the Saudi port of Jeddah on September 17, before it sailed to Port Sudan, arriving the following day.

After this, the boat's tracking system was switched off, before it appeared again under the cover of darkness in Aden on October 29.

Secrecy surrounds the flow of weaponry to Yemen's conflict that as of October 31 has killed more than 100,000 people since 2015, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.

Related Article: Sold to an ally, lost to an enemy

The fighting has divided the country's north from south. Iranian-backed Houthis rebels control the capital of Sanaa, while the US-supported, Saudi-led anti-Houthi forces hold Aden. Infighting in the south this summer -- between Saudi-supported forces of the internationally recognized government and UAE-backed separatists -- further splintered territorial control, threatening to plunge the entire country into a protracted and multi-sided war.

A peace deal between government forces and the separatists was signed on Tuesday in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. It aims to end the power struggle around Aden and defer the issue of whether the south will secede until after the battle against the Houthi-controlled north has been won.

Violating US arms agreements

In February, a CNN investigation revealed that Saudi Arabia and the UAE -- key US allies -- had transferred American-made weapons to al Qaeda-linked fighters, hardline Salafi militias, and other fighting factions in Yemen, in violation of their agreements with Washington.

Oshkosh Defense, the manufacturer of one of the armored vehicles (MRAPs) seen in the latest shipment, told CNN that the firm "strictly follows all US laws and regulations relating to export control."

Last month, CNN revealed that US MRAPs had been distributed, in contravention of arms deals, to militia groups including the UAE-backed separatists. The separatists were using this equipment in the fight against government forces, who are also armed with US weapons.

Following the initial reporting the Pentagon said it had launched its own investigation, in conjunction with the State Department, into the unauthorized transfer of US weapons in Yemen, which a Pentagon spokesperson says remains "ongoing."

US lawmakers, citing CNN's investigations, have since moved to ban weapons sales to Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, passing the War Powers Resolution against a sitting President for the first time in a bid to end US military support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, and also tried to sanction the Saudis for the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The War Powers Resolution was approved by the House and Senate but was vetoed by Trump in April.

Trump again invoked his veto rights in late July to block a trio of Congressional resolutions banning $8.1 billion in weapons sales to various countries, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The President argued that maintaining the flow of weapons to the two US allies was necessary, citing national security issues and fears of Iranian aggression.

The 2014 deal signed by the UAE with the US was worth $2.5 billion and required the delivery of 4,500 MRAPs.

Under the UAE and Saudi Arabia's arms sales agreements with the US, American-made MRAPs are considered "proprietary technology," which neither party was supposed to let out of its control.

Recipients of US weaponry are also legally obligated to adhere to end-use requirements which prohibit the transferring of any equipment to third parties without prior authorization from the US government. That authorization was never obtained.

A State Department official told CNN that the American government takes all allegations of the misuse of US weaponry very seriously but insisted "there is currently no US prohibition on the use of US-origin MRAPs by Gulf coalition forces in Yemen." A spokesman for the Pentagon, Lt. Col Uriah L. Orland, told CNN "we cannot comment on any potential or ongoing investigations of claims of end-use violations," but also reiterated there was currently no prohibition on the use of US MRAPs in Yemen.

CNN has found multiple instances this year where that weaponry was diverted, in defiance of end-user agreements.

In response to CNN's request for comment a spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition Col. Turki Al-Maliki said "the information that the military equipment will be delivered to a third party is unfounded." He went on to say that "all military equipment is used by Saudi forces in accordance with term and conditions of Foreign Military Sales (FMS) adopted by the US government and in pursuance of the Arms Export Control Act."

US hold on arms to UAE

Speaking exclusively to CNN, multiple congressional sources now say the US government has placed a hold on the latest outstanding MRAP delivery to the UAE while the Pentagon continues its investigation.

What this latest Saudi delivery of American weaponry to Aden proves is US military hardware is still flowing into Yemen.

The UAE has not responded to requests for comment.

In February, the UAE told CNN that there was no violation of end use requirements "in any manner." Responding to CNN's evidence in October, a UAE official said: "There were no instances when US-made equipment was used without direct UAE oversight, except for four vehicles that were captured by the enemy."

The US House Foreign Affairs Committee is demanding an urgent briefing from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper after CNN's reporting in October, seeking ways to stop the flow of weaponry into Yemen's chaos once and for all.

Peace deal

An agreement between the Saudi-backed forces and the UAE-supported separatists was signed in Riyadh on Tuesday. The text of the deal requires militias to return troops by mid-November to locations under their control prior to the breakout of fighting in August. The deal also designates that "medium and heavy weapons" are placed in camps under coalition supervision. It's unclear what this will mean in practice as there is no requirement for the militias to disarm.

No specific measures in the deal address the illicitly distributed US-made weaponry, whose advanced technology has proven decisive on the ground.

Sources close to the talks told CNN that the internationally recognized government had sought assurances from the UAE that it would cease arming separatist forces -- but none was forthcoming.

Meanwhile, the broader conflict between the Iran-supported Houthis and the US-backed Saudi-led coalition still remains unresolved.

CNN's Oscar Featherstone, Jennifer Hansler, Sarah El Sirgany, Barbara Starr and Ryan Browne contributed to this report.

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2019-11-06 08:37:00Z
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Trump's impeachment defense splintered by new revelations - CNN

A dramatic reversal by Republican donor turned diplomat Gordon Sondland, who now says that a quid pro quo was needed from Kiev to free up military aid, rocked Washington Tuesday and undercut GOP strategy.

In testimony released by impeachment investigators, the US ambassador to the European Union also testified that he assumed it would be "illegal" for Trump's fixer and personal attorney Rudy Giuliani to push Ukraine to investigate the President's political opponents.

Sondland's adjusted testimony did much to dismantle the President's core and repeated defense: that he did not hold up aid to Kiev to force it to open a probe into Joe Biden and that any suggestion to the contrary is simply the "crazed" delusion of "Never Trumpers."

But his deposition was still punctuated by admissions that he could not remember what happened or did not know the motivations of key players -- signs of a potential attempt to protect the President.

Yet given the ossified political partisanship in the Congress, there were also signs that no disclosures, however damaging to the President, are likely to turn a party in thrall to his faithful political base against him and lead it to contemplate ejecting him from office.

Still, Sondland was not the only senior diplomatic figure to contradict the President's version of events on the second day of releases that threaten to turn into slow moving political torture for the White House.

The former US envoy to Ukraine, Kurt Volker, threatened another pillar of Trump's defense -- that the July 25 call with the Ukrainian President that Trump has said was "perfect" was in fact a "surprise" and "extremely unfortunate."

Tuesday's developments were a critical twist in an investigation that is on the cusp of new and public phase that could further imperil the President and his 2020 election plans.

The disclosures appeared to significantly weaken the White House case that there was no quid pro quo with Ukraine and therefore no abuse of presidential power worthy of impeachment.

'A very grave day'

Democrats immediately seized on Tuesday's events to argue that a devastating hole had been blown in Trump's defense.

"This is a very grave development for both Ambassador Sondland and frankly for President Trump and his Republican defenders," Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

"The entire defense by President Trump and his Republican acolytes in Congress that there was no quid pro quo has now collapsed."

A growing list of witnesses, including the top diplomat in Ukraine William Taylor and National Security Council aide Tim Morrison have testified that Ukraine opening political probes was linked to $400 million in aid and a potential meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Vlodymyr Zelensky.

Further damaging revelations are possible in the coming days as Democrats preside over the release of testimony taken behind closed doors as they prepare for public impeachment hearings.

The evidence from Sondland and Volker was far from the only damaging development over the last few days for Trump and his loyal troops on Capitol Hill.

Hundreds of pages of transcripts show that GOP lawmakers and counsel spent hours cross-examining witnesses in days of hearings, despite claims they were shut out of the process -- another pillar of the GOP objections to impeachment.

Growing evidence meanwhile of a shadow foreign policy scheme masterminded by Giuliani and stretching over months undermines Trump's focus on two events -- the call with Zelensky and a whistleblower report -- as the only significant data points in the scandal.

At one point, Sondland deepened the political plight of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who appears to have been aware of the Giuliani scheme but done nothing to stop it: "Pompeo rolled his eyes and said: 'Yes, it's something we have to deal with.' "

The White House responded to Tuesday's events in characteristic fashion, with press secretary Stephanie Grisham ignoring the existence of newly disclosed facts.

"No amount of salacious media-biased headlines, which are clearly designed to influence the narrative, change the fact that the President has done nothing wrong," she said.

But Grisham also seized on Volker's statement that he was not aware of the existence of a quid pro quo and belief that the new Kiev government did not know aid was held up. She also pointed out that Sondland did not directly tie Trump personally to the demand for a quid pro quo.

"Both transcripts released today show there is even less evidence for this illegitimate impeachment sham than previously thought," she said in a statement.

Grisham's commentary was undermined by Sondland's new testimony itself since he now says he told a Zelensky aide that the security assistance an announcement of a public investigation were in fact linked.

McConnell stands firm

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Delaware, said on CNN's "Situation Room" that Sondland's profile made his revised testimony even more significant and damaging to the President.

"This is not some anonymous whistleblower. This cannot be argued to be some action by a deep state opponent of President Trump," Coons said. "Gordon Sondland, the ambassador to the EU, was a major Republican donor and a supporter of President Trump."

Still, while Tuesday's disclosures seemed to wound Trump in the fact-based environment of an impeachment probe, his political future is playing out in front of diverse audiences. While Democrats see further proof of guilt, Republican lawmakers seem likely to simply fall back on a new set of arguments.

They can make the somewhat implausible case that since Sondland did not implicate the President in the quid pro quo, he could have been acting on his own initiative or the orders of someone else.

They can try to repurpose the argument that a quid pro quo is not illegal and a fact of foreign policy -- a point made last month by White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney that was quickly withdrawn.

Or they can reach a last resort position that Trump's conduct may not be acceptable but is not impeachable -- however much that might anger a President who insists he did nothing wrong.

Whatever they say, Tuesday's developments, while changing the legal and logical context of the impeachment inquiry are unlikely to shift the locked in political dynamics imposed by America's tribal partisan environment.

"I'm pretty sure how it's likely to end. If it were today, I don't think there's any question it would not lead to removal," GOP Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday, speaking about the prospects for an impeachment trial in the Republican-led Senate.

But the wider politics of impeachment are still tough to call. No revelations, however damning, are likely to shake Trump's hold on his political base glued together by his claim, last made in Kentucky Monday night that the Democratic tactics are the "crazed" actions of a party seeking to overturn an election.

And new polls show that in the swing states that will decide whether he wins a second term, public opinion is closely divided on whether he should be impeached and removed from office.

But Sondland's testimony offered a preview of how damaging testimony by witnesses close to the President could undermine his narrative on Ukraine and wrong doing. That could have the potential to reshape wider public opinion among more moderate voters Trump also needs a year from now.

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2019-11-06 06:24:00Z
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Mormons were attacked near the US-Mexico border. A family member says 9 US-Mexican citizens were killed - CNN

Preliminary information indicates three vehicles traveling between the Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua in the region of Sierra Madre Occidental were attacked by criminal groups, Attorney General of the State of Chihuahua Cesar Peniche Espejel said in a statement Tuesday. The victims were mostly women and children, and minors were found with injuries, the statement said.

Victims' family members said the incident happened when the families were moving from Bavispe, Sonora, to Janos, Chihuahua, according to Peniche Espejel.

Alex LeBaron, who says he lost family members in the attack, told CNN that three vehicles were targeted, taking the lives of three women, four small children and two infants.

"Women and children (between 14 years old and 10 months) were massacred, burnt alive. Mothers were screaming for the fire to stop," he said. "We are a very tight knit community, we share everything that's happening. We've been dealing with this tragedy since early yesterday. We share all information within our family groups."

LeBaron said seven injured children were flown a few hours ago from Mexico to Douglas, Arizona, for transport to Tucson hospitals.

He said that there were two separate attacks on the victims, he believes, by two different groups that were part of the same cartel "most likely by accident, mistaken for their rivals. All shot while in vehicles while driving."

Authorities in the state of Sonora have not confirmed the number of casualties, and Peniche Espejel said that due to the remote location of the attack, it has "not been possible to specify an official figure of the total number of victims."

The attorney general's office confirmed that officials from Chihuahua have been sent to the area to assist. Sonora Governor Claudia Pavlovich Arellano said on her official Twitter that the state is collaborating with the investigation.

"As a mother I feel angry, scorn and a profound pain for the cowardly events in the mountains between Sonora and Chihuahua," she said. "I don't know what type of monsters would dare to hurt women and children. As governor, you have all my collaboration so that this doesn't remain unpunished and the responsible parties pay."

CNN is working to confirm the nationality of those involved in the attack and has reached out to the US State Department.

The attack comes amid worsening violence in the region and follows last month's ambush that killed 13 Mexican police officers in the western state of Michoacan. Last year set a record for homicides in the country at 33,000 -- which 2019 is on course to break.

Christopher Landau, US Ambassador to Mexico, tweeted early Tuesday, "The security of our nationals is our main priority. I am following closely the situation in the mountains between Sonora and Chihuahua."

Leah Staddon told CNN affiliate KTVK that her relatives were among the victims of the attack.

"I think a lot of us are just speechless. it's just horrific," Staddon told KTVK. "Their vehicle was on fire and there were bullet holes all throughout it."

CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.

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2019-11-05 12:44:00Z
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Iranian president announces another break from nuclear deal - CNBC

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani arrives to address the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, September 25, 2019.

Carlo Allegri | Reuters

Iran's president announced on Tuesday that Tehran will begin injecting uranium gas into 1,044 centrifuges, the latest step away from its nuclear deal with world powers since President Donald Trump withdrew from the accord over a year ago.

The development is significant as the centrifuges previously spun empty, without gas injection, under the landmark 2015 nuclear accord. It also increases pressure on European nations that remain in the accord, which at this point has all but collapsed.

In his announcement, President Hassan Rouhani did not say whether the centrifuges, which are at its nuclear facility in Fordo, would be used to produce enriched uranium. The centrifuges would be injected with the uranium gas as of Wednesday, Rouhani said.

His remarks, carried live on Iranian state television, came a day after Tehran's nuclear program chief said the country had doubled the number of advanced IR-6 centrifuges in operation.

There was no immediate reaction from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog now monitoring Iran's compliance with the deal. The European Union on Monday called on Iran to return to the deal, while the White House sanctioned members of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's inner circle as part of its maximalist campaign against Tehran.

Rouhani stressed the steps taken so far, including going beyond the deal's enrichment and stockpile limitations, could be reversed if Europe offers a way for it to avoid U.S. sanctions choking off its crude oil sales abroad.

"We should be able to sell our oil," Rouhani said. "We should be able to bring our money" into the country.

The centrifuges at Fordo are IR-1s, Iran's first-generation centrifuge. The nuclear deal allowed those at Fordo to spin without uranium gas, while allowing up to 5,060 at its Natanz facility to enrich uranium.

A centrifuge enriches uranium by rapidly spinning uranium hexafluoride gas. An IR-6 centrifuge can produce enriched uranium 10 times faster than an IR-1, Iranian officials say.

Iranian scientists also are working on a prototype called the IR-9, which works 50-times faster than the IR-1, Iran's nuclear chief Ali Akhbar Salehi said Monday.

As of now, Iran is enriching uranium up to 4.5%, in violation of the accord's limit of 3.67%. Enriched uranium at the 3.67% level is enough for peaceful pursuits but is far below weapons-grade levels of 90%. At the 4.5% level, it is enough to help power Iran's Bushehr reactor, the country's only nuclear power plant. Prior to the atomic deal, Iran only reached up to 20%.

Tehran has gone from producing some 450 grams (1 pound) of low-enriched uranium a day to 5 kilograms (11 pounds), Salehi said. Iran now holds over 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) of low-enriched uranium, Salehi said. The deal had limited Iran to 300 kilograms (661 pounds).

The collapse of the nuclear deal coincided with a tense summer of mysterious attacks on oil tankers and Saudi oil facilities that the U.S. blamed on Iran. Tehran denied the allegation, though it did seize oil tankers and shoot down a U.S. military surveillance drone.

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2019-11-05 10:34:16Z
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Sister of slain ISIS leader captured by Turkey, official says - CNN

Not much is known about Awad, 65, but Ankara hopes her capture will lead to a wealth of intelligence about the militant group. She is currently being questioned by authorities.

"This kind of thing is an intelligence gold mine. What she knows about ISIS can significantly expand our understanding of the group and help us catch more bad guys," the Turkish official said.

Awad was detained in a raid on a metal container housing unit in Azaz, Aleppo province, part of a region that has been administered by Turkey since it carried out an operation to clear the border of ISIS militants in 2016.

The Turkish official did not provide details about the date of the operation.

Awad was taken into custody alongside her husband and daughter-in-law, who were also being questioned by Turkish authorities. Five children were found with them during the raid, the official said.

Photos shared by Turkish officials showed Awad dressed in a black abaya headscarf and loose, blue patterned clothing.

Turkey has described the discovery of Baghdadi's relatives as a boon for its intel about ISIS, saying that it will help the country better protect itself and Europe from terrorists.

The elusive and highly secretive leader of ISIS died during a raid conducted last month by the US military in close coordination with American intelligence and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in northwest Syria.

Baghdadi "blew himself up" after he was cornered by US forces in a tunnel within his compound, US President Donald Trump said during a press conference detailing the mission. His identity was later confirmed by DNA tests.

The world's most wanted man oversaw the militant group's transformation from a ragtag insurgency to a global terror network that attracted tens of thousands of fighters to its so-called "caliphate" in Iraq and Syria.

At the group's height, Baghdadi reigned over a territory the size of Britain, from which ISIS orchestrated attacks carried out in countries around the world.

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2019-11-05 09:45:00Z
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A view from the bridge: Iraq's protesters under fire - Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Ali says he has seen more than 50 people killed in front of him since anti-government protests began in Iraq last month.

Iraqi demonstrators climb Al Jumhuriya bridge during the ongoing anti-government protests in Baghdad, Iraq November 3, 2019. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

“The first one was shocking - he was someone I knew, and they shot him in the chest,” said Ali, in his early 20s and from Baghdad’s low-income Sadr City district.

“But you quickly get used to death ... I’ve seen people, some of them friends, choke, drown, have their skulls split open by tear gas and stun grenades,” Ali, who declined to give his last name, said as he played a mobile phone video of the shooting victim in his final moments in the capital’s Tahrir Square last month.

“We can’t even cry over their bodies any more.”

Since the start of October, more than 250 Iraqis have been killed protesting against a government they see as corrupt and beholden to foreign interests, according to eyewitnesses and medical and security sources.

There was no immediate comment from the interior ministry, which oversees many of the security forces, but a government report said nearly 150 people were killed in the first week of the unrest, 70% from bullets to the head or chest.

Recounting stories of his fallen comrades, Ali leaned against a mound of dirty blankets on the Tigris river bank under the Jumhuriya – or Republic – Bridge.

For the past 10 days, hundreds of young men and boys – some as young as 12 – have been camped out on the bridge, and under it. Wearing construction hats, gas masks, and chanting for the downfall of the government, they call themselves “the front line of the revolution”.

The bridge, which leads from the square to Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, where government buildings and foreign embassies are located, has seen fierce clashes between protesters and security forces.

Protesters, armed with slingshots, have erected barricades of iron sheets and concrete blocks. Security forces have used rubber bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas against them, killing scores on the adjacent Jumhuriya and Sinak bridges.

Both sides have settled into an uneasy stalemate.

“We throw rocks at them, and they respond by killing us,” said Ali, as several tear gas canisters were lobbed by security forces.

BOYS UNDER THE BRIDGE

A group of medical volunteers have set up camp to help the wounded. They say the expired tear gas – Reuters saw used canisters with an expiry date of 2014 – is making people choke.

One young man, barefoot and wearing a dirty tank top and trousers, passed out after choking on the gas. A Reuters correspondent saw medics lower him off the bridge and put him in a tuk-tuk headed for a nearby hospital.

Ali is surrounded by a tight-knit group of 10, who have been camped under the Jumhuriya bridge since Oct. 24.

Reminiscent of Peter Pan’s Lost Boys, the group radiated an intensity forged by bloodshed. Many come from Baghdad’s poorest neighborhoods, where they work as tuk-tuk drivers or day laborers.

Despite Iraq’s oil wealth, many live in poverty with limited access to clean water, electricity, healthcare or education. Protesters blame corruption.

“For 16 years we’ve been told that our lives would be better,” said Abbas, who declined to give his last name.

“But I’m 19 and I’ve worked most days since I was 10 and still I don’t have more than 5,000 dinars ($4) in my pocket.”

DANGEROUS NIGHTS

Abbas was arrested in the first wave of protests, along with Ali and others in the group. They said their phones were scanned to identify fellow protesters. Released on bail, they were told to stay away from the demonstrations.

“But the very next day I went back to the protests,” said Ali. “We have to stay here to keep the revolution going.”

Nearly all those Reuters spoke to had bandages on their arms, torsos and legs. They said many of their injuries came from security forces who fire tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets, sometimes from boats on the river.

It is most dangerous at night, they said.

Slideshow (7 Images)

A few nights ago at 3 a.m., security forces threw gasoline at their camp, followed by burning rags, Ali said. The rags landed near a group of sleeping boys, according to a video seen by Reuters.

The boys now stand guard in shifts.

“The second we leave this bridge, the government will storm Tahrir Square and finish off the protests,” Ali said. “They can throw whatever they want at us. But we’re not going anywhere.”

Reporting by Raya Jalabi; Editing by Giles Elgood

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2019-11-05 06:04:00Z
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Xi Jinping demands end to violent protests in surprise meeting with Hong Kong leader - CNN

Xi and Lam were in Shanghai for the 2019 China International Import Expo, where Xi is expected to make a speech on Tuesday. Neither leader had announced the meeting was planned before it took place.

State-run news agency Xinhua said Xi had demanded "unswerving efforts" to end the violence in the Asian financial hub and punish those responsible "to safeguard the well-being of the general public in Hong Kong."

The Asian financial hub is in its fifth month of demonstrations that began in June over a controversial China extradition bill. The unrest has plunged the former British colony into a recession and damaged the tourism industry.

A total of 325 people were arrested on protest-related charges during the latest spate of violence at the weekend, Hong Kong police said.

Protesters shut down major roads and disrupted public transport. Some protesters also firebombed Xinhua's Hong Kong headquarters -- an act condemned as "barbaric" in a statement by the state-run news agency.

The Chinese government last month dismissed reports that it was planning to remove Lam from her role early in 2020 due to widespread dissatisfaction over her handling of the protests.

In a news conference after a major government meeting in late October, senior Chinese official Shen Chunyao said Beijing had plans to "improve" the system by which Hong Kong's leader is appointed or removed.

But the Chinese government denied it was looking to replace Lam and has repeatedly backed her handling of the protests.

During his meeting with Lam Monday, Xi said the Hong Kong chief executive had led her government "to fully discharge its duties, strive to stabilize the situation and improve the social atmosphere, and has done a lot of hard work," according to Xinhua.

"Xi voiced the central government's high degree of trust in Lam and full acknowledgment of the work of her and her governance team," the news agency said.

On top of a crackdown on violence, Xi also called for more effective efforts to hold "dialogue with all sectors of the society and improve people's livelihood."

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2019-11-05 04:05:00Z
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