Hong Kong tunnel reopens, campus siege nears end

A major tunnel in Hong Kong reopened on Wednesday as a week-long police siege of a nearby university seemed to wind down, closing one of the most violent chapters in the Chinese territory's long-running anti-government protests.

The Cross-Harbor Tunnel, which connects Hong Kong Island with the rest of the city, was closed for two weeks after protesters blocked the approach with debris and set fire to the toll booths as they clashed with police.

Search teams sweeping the Polytechnic campus in Hong Kong for a second straight day found no evidence of any protesters still holding up, University vice president Miranda Lou said.

The protests began in June, when the former British colony returned to Chinese control in 1997, over an extradition bill seen by protesters as an erosion of their freedoms. Since then, the movement has expanded into a protest about what they see as the increasing interference of Beijing in the city.