HONG KONG: China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers in shorts and t-shirts made a surprising appearance in some Hong Kong streets on Saturday, briefly helping residents clean up debris after anti-government protests blocked roads, witnesses said.

The presence of PLA troops on the streets, even to help clean up roads near their base, could stoke further controversy over the Chinese-ruled territory’s autonomous status, international media reported.

Hong Kong has been rocked by more than five months of demonstrations by protesters angry at perceived Communist Party meddling in the former British colony, which was guaranteed its freedoms when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997.