Anti-government protesters have been holed up in a Hong Kong university for days, surrounded by police. Photographer Bing Guan has spent the last five days with them, documenting the siege—and at the time of publication of these images he remains on the campus.

The occupiers originally numbered in the hundreds. But around 800 protesters who originally barricaded themselves inside Polytechnic University (PolyU) had surrendered as of Tuesday night. Others attempted daring escapes, crawling through underground sewerage systems or abseiling off a footbridge to make their way to waiting getaway vehicles below.

Now only a few hardliners remain.

PolyU has been the scene of some of the fiercest battles since the unrest began in June. Enraged by the death of a university student, protesters took over the campuses of several universities across the city last week. Students camping out at PolyU quickly began preparing for a protracted standoff.

A frontline protestor eats a late-night hot dog at the “American Diner” on the Polytechnic University campus, Nov. 15, 2019.
Bing Guan

“Within a matter of hours, they turned this place into a fully-functioning city,” Bing tells TIME by phone.

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Handful of Holdouts Remain at Besieged Hong Kong University