Next Weekly, a magazine under Jimmy Lai's Next Digital in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), announced on Wednesday that it will cease operations.

Photo: Xinhua

The announcement came as five executives of Apple Daily and parent company Next Digital were arrested on Thursday for allegedly colluding with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security.

Chief Executive of the HKSAR Carrie Lam defended the arrest on Tuesday, stressing they were prosecuted for breaching the national security law in Hong Kong, and that the arrest has nothing to do with freedom of the press.