Hawzah News Agency - HONG Kong police apologized yesterday to the city’s Muslim community after they hit a major mosque with water canon while dispersing rioters in Kowloon on Sunday.

According to the statement, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Hong Kong’s Commissioner of Police Lo Wai-chung visited the mosque yesterday to extend their apology to the Muslim leaders.

The statement reiterated that the police had no intention of offending any religious group in Hong Kong.

It added that the Muslim community in Hong Kong always respected the rule of law and maintained good relations with the police.

Hong Kong police will respect the freedom of religion and protect all the religious groups in its best capacity, it said.

Their apology was accepted by the Muslim Council of Hong Kong, which clarified in a statement that the city’s biggest mosque was not police’s intended target, calling on Hong Kong residents to “seek calmness over revenge” and avoid “making the situation worse.”

On Sunday, thousands of violent protesters gathered in Kowloon district, setting fires with petrol bombs. To clear up the mess from violent protests and disperse rioters, the Kowloon district police used tear gas and water cannon trucks which sprayed jets of blue dye into the crowds.