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Hong Kong protesters have brought the city to a standstill after a pro-democracy movement called for a general strike.

At least 100 flights have been cancelled and metro services widely disrupted as demonstrators blocked train and platform doors to prevent trains from leaving stations.

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam says the protests are pushing the city to the "verge of a very dangerous situation".

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The city-wide general strike follows a weekend of violent clashes between protesters and authorities, with police deploying tear gas, rubber bullets and other crowd control measures.

Demonstrations on Monday hit seven districts in the city and hampered the morning rush hour.

Roads into the main arteries of the city were paralysed and long queues of traffic were seen across Hong Kong Island.

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Metro and train operator MTR said its service had been partially suspended after protesters obstructed doors.

Hundreds of people were left stranded at the airport as Cathay Pacific and other domestic aircraft carriers such as Hong Kong Airlines were among those worst hit by flight cancellations, public broadcaster RTHK said.

Speaking at a news conference, Ms Lam said citizens were feeling anxious about the violence and disruptions and called for the city to "rally together".

She said she would not be acting on calls for her to resign but would take responsibility for Hong Kong's problems.

Protesters have waged war with Ms Lam's administration since a controversial extradition bill was announced which would have allowed people to be sent to mainland China for trial.

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Those opposing the bill believe it would restrict Hong Kong's democratic freedoms and could lead to unfair trials.

Ms Lam claimed the extradition bill was "dead", but her critics argue it has not been formally withdrawn.

The leader said the protests were no longer about extradition legislation but now had "ulterior motives" to target Hong Kong's prosperity and security.

But protesters say Ms Lam is fuelling the crisis by ignoring public sentiment.

University student Jay Leung said it was "totally a waste of time to hear" the leader speak.

"I don't think the government is doing anything to heal society," he added. "They provide no solution to solve the political problem brought on by themselves."

Mark Schmidt, 49, said: "(The government) are making police the scapegoat and creating a situation that is becoming unbearable for everyone who lives here.

"So that's one of the reasons we have joined the strike.

"Losing a bit of money now is not such a problem (compared) with losing everything that the freedom of Hong Kong used to stand for," he added.