China In Turmoil : Protests For Democracy : Fiery Battle for Beijing Square

It began tentatively, chaotically on Saturday, but by this morning it had turned into a full-scale assault on thousands of protesters gathered in Beijing’s Tian An Men Square.

Hundreds of casualties were reported as Chinese troops cleared away pro-democracy demonstrators from the central square that they had occupied for weeks.

Early Saturday morning, soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army had tried to march toward the square, but they were turned back by huge crowds. A second attempt also was frustrated. The troops seemed demoralized and leaderless, and some broke into tears.

However, by Saturday afternoon the tide seemed to turn in favor of the troops. A contingent of 5,000 emerged from the west side of the Great Hall of the People on the square.

They soon engaged in a tense standoff with thousands of demonstrators, who eventually surrounded the troops. The crowd threw stones, bricks and bottles.

Another confrontation occurred a short distance away at the entrance to Zhongnanhai, the compound where Communist Party leaders live. There, troops used tear gas against thousands of protesters but failed to disperse them.

Confrontations appeared to ease briefly Saturday night.

But shortly after midnight, gunfire began all over Beijing, from Tian An Men Square to the outskirts of the city. Early this morning, military convoys barreled toward the square. Heavy automatic rifle fire was heard, and troops opened fire on thousands of unarmed demonstrators.