Over 50 Hong Kong Opposition figures were arrested on Wednesday under the new national security law in the largest operation against Beijing’s critics, deepening a police crackdown sweeping the financial hub, reported AFP. 

Opposition figures and parties took to their social media handles like Twitter and Facebook to confirm at least 21 arrests, most on a charge of “subversion”.

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2 senior police sources, who both requested to remain anonymous, told AFP that “around 50” had been arrested by the city’s new national security unit.

The operation netted a swathe of opposition figures, from veteran former pro-democracy lawmakers such as James To, Andrew Wan and Lam Cheuk Ting to a host of younger activists.

Gwyneth Ho, a 30-year-old former journalist turned social activist and Tiffany Yuen, a 27-year-old district councillor were among the few youth campaigners, who confirmed their arrests via Facebook. 

Colleagues of Joshua Wong, one of the city’s most famous democracy activists who is currently in jail, said via his official Facebook account that his home was thoroughly searched by national security police in the same operation.

Hong Kong police did not respond to requests for comment on how many had been arrested and why.

Opposition figures said the arrests were linked to a primary organised by pro-democracy parties last year ahead of local legislative elections, which were ultimately scrapped.

More than 600,000 natives of  Hong Kong turned out to vote in the unofficial primary, which was aimed at selecting the suitable candidate for election in Hong Kong’s legislature -‘a body where only half the 70 seats are popularly elected’.

The objective of the campaign was to acquire all 35 elected seats and take a majority in the legislature for the first time.

At the time, Beijing officials had warned that campaigning to win a majority constituted “subversion” under the new security law.

That law was imposed on Hong Kong in late June in response to 2019’s huge and often violent pro-democracy protests when millions of protesters had taken to the streets to raise their voices.

The broadly worded law bypassed the city’s legislature and was kept secret until the moment it was enacted.

Officials said the law would only target an “extreme minority” and was needed to restore order.

However, the law swiftly silenced dissent and outlawed certain peaceful political views in the city with dozens of prominent figures being held by the cops even before Wednesday’s operation.

National security crimes carry a maximum of life in prison and bail is not usually granted for those who are charged.