Verdict for Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai’s national security trial

Hong Kong’s High Court will hand down a verdict against pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai next Monday, according to a notice on the city’s judiciary website, in a landmark national security trial that has drawn international scrutiny. Lai, 78, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, and a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material in a case where he faces life imprisonment if convicted. The 156-day trial, which began in December 2023, has become the most high-profile example of China’s crackdown on rights and freedoms in the Asian financial hub under a sweeping national security law that was imposed after mass pro-democracy protests in 2019. Some countries, including the U.S., say the trial is politically motivated and have demanded Lai’s immediate release. U.S. President Donald Trump raised Lai’s case during a meeting with China’s leader Xi Jinping in South Korea in October. His family and lawyers have said Lai’s health is deteriorating and h