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 The mostly young protesters have demanded Hong Kong's leader,
Leung Chun-ying, step down by the end of Thursday, threatening to
occupy government buildings if he fails to do so.
They have also called on China to introduce full democracy so the
city can freely choose its own leader.
Leung, appointed by Beijing, has refused to stand down, leaving the
two sides far apart in a dispute over how much political control
China should have over Hong Kong.
Steve Hui, senior superintendent of the Hong Kong police force, said
police would take action in accordance with the law if the
protesters tried to enter government buildings.
"Whenever there are violent and major incidents and crimes such as
fighting and any other situation that jeopardises safety and public
order, police will take resolute and firm action to restore public
order," Hui said, when asked how police would respond should the
students carry through with their threat.
"We assure that police will have enough manpower to deal with every
single situation."
 Riot police used tear gas, pepper spray and baton charges last
weekend to quell unrest, the worst in Hong Kong since China resumed
its rule of the former British colony in 1997.
The "Occupy Central" movement presents one of the biggest political
challenges for Beijing since it violently crushed pro-democracy
protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Protesters across the city have dug in, setting up supply stations
with water bottles, fruit, raincoats, towels, goggles, face masks,
tents and umbrellas.
The Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of the protest organisers,
has urged people to surround more government buildings from Friday
unless the authorities accepted their demands.
Protest leaders addressed supporters camped near the government
headquarters, preparing them for a potentially tense night ahead
including the possibility of police using tear gas.
"In the coming days we will team up to support the movement and
provide resources. We will fight until the very end," student leader
Joshua Wong said from atop a ladder, to huge cheers.
The three main protest groups have started to work more closely
together, trying to give a show of unity after some disagreements on
tactics over the past several days.
The Hong Kong government said the protests, now in their sixth day,
were affecting public order and public services.
"About 3,000 government officials will try their best tomorrow to
return to work as (much) as possible. To maintain public service,
the government headquarters must operate as usual," the government
said in a statement.
"We urge the Occupy Central leaders and organisers to stop the
movement immediately."
While the number of protesters on the streets fell on Thursday, the
second of two-day public holiday, tension remained high and the
demonstrations appeared far from over.
Outside Leung's office in the Central business district, protesters
surrounded a police van that tried to enter the compound, prompting
police to call reinforcements. Some protesters donned goggles and
gas masks.
Earlier, about 100 protesters blocked the main road leading to
Leung's office, some chanting, "Leung Chun-ying, Step Down!"
READY FOR THE LONG-GAME
China has dismissed the pro-democracy protests as illegal, but it
faces a dilemma.
Cracking down too hard could shake confidence in market-driven Hong
Kong, which has a separate legal system from the rest of China. Not
reacting firmly enough, however, could embolden dissidents on the
mainland.
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A government source with ties to Leung said the Hong Kong leader was
prepared to play a long-game, intervening only if there was looting
or violence.
"Unless there's some chaotic situation, we won't send in riot police
... We hope this doesn't happen," the source said. "We have to deal
with it peacefully, even if it lasts weeks or months." Leung could
not be reached for comment.
A front-page editorial in the People's Daily, the Communist Party
mouthpiece, lauded Leung's leadership and the police response to the
protests. "The central government fully trusts Chief Executive Leung
Chun-ying and is very satisfied with his work," it said on Thursday.
A pro-Beijing group told a news conference in Hong Kong their
supporters would take to the streets to show support for Leung's
administration, raising the prospect of clashes between the two
sides.
The crowded suburbs of Kowloon and the neighbouring New Territories
are home to an extensive network of pro-Beijing groups, some of
which boast close ties to mainland companies and officials and have
grown active in street counter-protests in recent months.
REPUTATION UNDER THREAT
A top Chinese envoy has warned that the protests could tarnish the
city's reputation as one of the world's leading financial hubs if
they continued for a prolonged period.
China's ambassador to Germany, Shi Mingde, told Reuters that the
city's reputation as a financial hub was not under threat for now.
"But if shares fall, if the unrest continues, then the social order
and (Hong Kong's) role as a financial centre will be in danger," he
said in an interview in Berlin.
"This is neither in Hong Kong's nor China's interest."
The city's benchmark index, closed on Thursday for a holiday,
plunged 7.3 percent in September.
Spooked by the protests, which turned violent at the weekend when
tens of thousands took to the streets, some banks and other
financial firms have begun moving staff to back-up premises on the
outskirts of the city.
U.S. President Barack Obama told visiting Chinese Foreign Minister
Wang Yi, who earlier met Secretary of State John Kerry, that
Washington was watching the protests closely and urged a peaceful
solution.
"The United States has consistently supported the open system that
is essential to Hong Kong's stability and prosperity, universal
suffrage, and the aspiration of the Hong Kong people," the White
House said in a statement about the meeting, also attended by
national security adviser Susan Rice.
Universal suffrage is an eventual goal under the "one country, two
systems" formula by which China rules Hong Kong. Under that formula,
China accords Hong Kong some autonomy and freedoms not enjoyed in
mainland China.
However, protesters calling for free elections reacted angrily when
Beijing decreed on Aug. 31 that it would vet candidates wishing to
run in Hong Kong's 2017 election.
(Additional reporting by Charlie Zhu, Yimou Lee, James Pomfret,
Irene Jay Liu, Farah Master, Diana Chan, Twinnie Siu, Kinling Lo,
Clare Baldwin, Diana Chan and Jason Subler in HONG KONG, Lesley
Wroughton, Arshad Mohammed, Jeff Mason and Steve Holland in
WASHINGTON, Jonathan Allen in NEW YORK, and Noah Barkin and Andreas
Rinke in BERLIN; Writing by Paul Tait and Jeremy Laurence; Editing
by Mark Bendeich)
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