A Hong Kong pro-democracy protester was pulled into Chinese consulate grounds in Manchester on Sunday and beaten up.
Unidentified men came out of the consulate and forced a man inside the compound, before he escaped with the help of police and other demonstrators.
The protester told the BBC: “They dragged me inside, they beat me up.”
A consulate spokesperson said protesters had displayed an insulting portrait of China’s president.
The Foreign Office said it was urgently seeking clarity on the incident. Greater Manchester Police has launched an investigation.
Speaking after the incident, the protester, called Bob, told BBC Chinese that “mainlanders” – people from mainland China, as opposed to Hong Kong – came out of the consulate and destroyed their posters.
“As we tried to stop them, they dragged me inside, they beat me up,” he said, adding that he was then pulled out by the UK police.
“It’s ridiculous. They [the attackers] shouldn’t have done that. We are supposed to have freedom to say whatever we want here [in the UK].”
After the incident, the crowd remained angry. Protesters shouted at the men from the consulate and the British police, arguing they could have done more.
