Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam to formally withdraw extradition bill

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has agreed to withdraw the contentious extradition bill, which has seen the region overrun by protests for the last 13 weeks.

The decision reaches one of protestors’ five demands of Lam. Facing pressure from China, she had previously insisted that the extradition bill would not be withdrawn.

Lam is expected to meet with pro-establishment allies this afternoon to announce her decision, according to South China Morning Post.

The decision follows yesterday’s release of a secret recording of Lam, in which she was recorded saying “If I have a choice the first thing is to quit, having made a deep apology”. Lam denied any intent to resign following the audio leak.

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