BEIJING, October 16. /TASS/. The US Department of State has no right to interfere in Hong Kong's internal affairs under the pretext of a probe into police brutality during protests in China's administrative region, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said on Wednesday.

“In Hong Kong, protesters from the Occupy Central [civil disobedience] movement illegally blocked transport routes refusing to obey police appeals and violating public order,” Hong Lei said.

This is “major violation of law and cannot be approved in any country,” he added. “At the present moment, the government of Hong Kong is investigating the incident. I want to say that no foreign government has the right to interfere in the internal affairs of Hong Kong,” the spokesman said.

In comments on China’s blocking a BBC website, he said “China respects freedom on the Internet but at the same time the government of the People’s Republic of China exercises legal control over the Internet space”.

On Wednesday, Chinese authorities blocked access to the BBC site after it posted videos showing Hong Kong police beating students in the streets. The site was blocked four hours after the videos were posted.

Demonstrators in one of Asia's biggest financial centres have been protesting against electoral reform proposals.