At least 25 people were injured after fresh clashes erupted between police and protesters in Hong Kong on Christmas Eve.

During the early hours of Tuesday night, hundreds of protesters and numerous riot control officers gathered at several shopping centres, Efe news reported.

Among the incidents that took place in the night, a young man reportedly leaped from the first floor of Yoho Mall while running away from the police. He was later hospitalized and on Wednesday was in a stable condition, according to the official Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK). It added that he was arrested for allegedly assaulting a police officer.

At least 25 were injured in Tuesday night’s clashes, with one in serious condition in hospital, RTHK said.

After 11 p.m. (local time), security forces announced they were going to carry out an operation to disperse and detain protesters blocking Nathan Street, the main avenue in Kowloon, with makeshift barricades.

An hour later, the police said that some of the protesters had refused to leave the area and that they had thrown Molotov cocktails at the Tsim Sha Tsui police station and set fire to an entrance of Mong Kok subway station.

The operator of the local subway, MTR, announced the closure of Mong Kok station and that of Tsim Sha Tsui for the rest of the night. Hong Kong metro usually operates all night over Christmas Eve.

Some protesters also smashed the glass doors of an HSBC branch and started a fire at the entrance. The bank became a target of the protest movement’s rage after a fundraising platform for arrested and injured protesters was frozen for alleged money laundering offenses.

The government of Hong Kong issued a statement early Wednesday in which it said the acts of the protesters “seriously disrupted social order, affected the festive mood and obstructed other people from enjoying the festive season,” which it described as “outrageous.”

The government also criticized the presence of Hong Kong independence flags in protests, saying that promoting the independence of the Hong Kong ” which belongs to China but retains a measure of autonomy until 2047 ” is unconstitutional and “not conducive to the overall and long-term interest of Hong Kong society.”

Earlier on Monday, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urged Chinese President Xi Jinping that the city should “continue to be free and open”.

On Friday, 80 teachers were arrested and four others have resigned or were suspended amid protests.

There were 123 complaints of protests-related misconduct against teachers between mid-June and late November.

Last week, police said that they foiled a second bomb plot in under a week after officers arrested three men allegedly testing home-made devices and chemicals in a secluded area.

Earlier in the month, Hong Kong’s protests are largely leaderless and organised online. They were initially sparked by a now-abandoned attempt to allow extraditions to the mainland but have since morphed into a popular revolt against Beijing’s rule.

In November, China had accused UK human rights chief, Michelle Bachelet of “inappropriate” interference in the country’s affairs, after she called for investigations into alleged excessive use of force by police in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong’s protests started nearly six months ago in June against proposals to allow extradition to mainland China, a move many feared would undermine the city’s judicial independence and endanger dissidents.

The controversial China extradition bill was withdrawn in early September but the movement has morphed into a wider campaign for greater democracy and against alleged police brutality.

(With inputs from agency)