"A Hong Kong court jailed pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai for 20 years on Monday after he was found guilty of national security offences last December

This is the harshest sentence under the controversial national security law, which China says is necessary for the city's stability

Lai, who is a British citizen, was one of the loudest critics of Beijing, often wielding his pro-democracy paper, Apple Daily, as a tool of protest

Six former executives of the paper were also jailed on Monday - from six years and nine months to 10 years"

Martin Yip, Danny Vincent and Phoebe Kong report for BBC News February 9, 2026. [2]