China's top envoy to Hong Kong hit out on Monday at anti-government protesters who daubed the walls of Beijing's office in the city with graffiti saying the previous night's events insulted "all Chinese people".
"These (acts) have seriously damaged Hong Kong's highly cherished rule of law spirit... and seriously damaged the feelings of all Chinese people including seven million Hong Kong compatriots," Wang Zhimin, the head of Beijing's Liaison Office told reporters.
Thousands of masked demonstrators briefly occupied the road outside Beijing's office on Sunday night, erected barricades and targeted the building with eggs, projectiles, laser lights and graffiti in a stark rebuke to Beijing's rule.
Wang said he offered his "strongest condemnation" over the protest and said he backed the Hong Kong government's vow to bring those "rioters" to justice.
Chinese state media also ran reports condemning the protest.
Xinhua quoted an unnamed representative of the Liason Office as saying the protest "blatantly challenged the authority of the central government" adding that "such behaviours are serious in nature, have caused bad influence and are absolutely intolerable."