Hong Kong’s pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper confirmed Wednesday that the following day’s newspaper will be its final edition after police froze its assets using a new national security law.” Apple Daily decided that the paper will cease operations from midnight and tomorrow (24th) will be the last publication day,” the paper wrote on its website.

“Apple Daily’s website will stop updates from midnight.” The announcement came minutes after the paper’s board said it would cease operations “no later than Saturday”.

Also read: Apple Daily: The Hong Kong tabloid that dared to challenge China

Authorities have made no secret of their desire to see the
newspaper silenced and have used a sweeping new national security law to bring
about its demise.

Its owner Jimmy Lai is in jail and was among the first to be
charged under the law after its imposition last year.

Over the last week, authorities used the law to raid the
paper’s newsroom, arrest six staff members, and freeze assets.

The last move left the paper unable to pay staff or vendors.

Also read: Office of pro-democracy newspaper raided by Hong Kong police

China imposed a security law on Hong Kong last year to stamp
out dissent after the city was convulsed by huge and often violent democracy
protests.

Authorities say their national security prosecution of Apple
Daily was sparked by articles and columns written over the last year that
allegedly supported international sanctions against China, a view now deemed as
illegal.

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It is the first time the political views and opinion
published by a media outlet in Hong Kong — a regional international press hub
— has triggered the security law.

More than 500 police officers raided the paper’s newsroom
last Thursday, carting away computers and notepads.

Five executives, including chief editor Ryan Law and CEO Cheung
Kim-hung, were detained on charges of colluding with foreign forces to
undermine China’s national security.

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Law and Cheung were charged on Saturday and remanded into
custody.

On Wednesday, police arrested a senior columnist from Apple
Daily on the same charge.

Yeung Ching-kee — who writes under the pen name Li Ping —
was one of the paper’s top columnists and the lead writer of their editorials,
which express the editorial board’s official views.