in exchange, the afghan government freed three senior taliban members -- anas haqqani, hafiz rashid, and haji mali khan. in hong kong, dozens of student protesters remain inside hong kong polytechnic university, which has been besieged by police for days. over 1000 students have been arrested as part of the siege. many of the protesters were forced to surrender after being injured by police firing rubber bullets and tear gas. others escaped by rappelling down a bridge and fleeing on waiting motorcycles. the standoff at the prestigious university is a dramatic escalation of the protests, which began in june. on tuesdsday, beijing g also condemned a hong kong court's decision monday to overturn a ban on face masks worn by the protesters. beijijing accused the hong kong judiciary of blatantly challenging the authority of china. in china, a gas explosion n inse a coalal mine hahas killed 15 workers and injured another nine in the northern province of shanxi. last year reviewew of the mi , a found it failed to provide adequate training for workers. china's mines are the deadliest in the w