Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s pro-democracy newspaper ‘Apple Daily’ will be closed by this weekend. The decision has been taken after the arrest of five editors and executive officers of the newspaper and the seizure of assets worth $2.3 million related to the newspaper.
The board of directors said in a statement on Wednesday that its print version and online version would be closed as of Saturday due to “current circumstances in Hong Kong”. The move comes after the arrests that took place last week. Five editors and executives were arrested on suspicion of colluding with foreigners to endanger national security.
Police cited more than 30 articles published by the newspaper as evidence of an alleged conspiracy to impose foreign sanctions on Hong Kong and China. The board of directors this week wrote to Hong Kong’s security bureau requesting it to release some of its funds so that the company can pay salaries. The US, EU, and the UK have criticized the police action against Apple Daily, saying Hong Kong and Chinese authorities are targeting the city’s freedoms.
