4 instructors from American universities and a local tourist injured in a knife attack in China

ISTANBUL

Officials confirmed that at least four U.S. college instructors and a local tourist suffered non-life-threatening injuries in a stabbing attack in northeastern China.

The attack occurred on Monday in the city of Jilin in the province of the same name, where the instructors were associated with Beihua University.

Police in Jilin said they detained a 55-year-old suspect “who collided with a foreigner while walking in Beishan Park,” Chinese state media reported.

The suspect then “attacked this foreigner and three other foreigners accompanying him with a knife, as well as a Chinese tourist who tried to detain him,” police said.

Footage from the scene shows four instructors bleeding and lying on the ground.

“I am in contact with the Iowa federal delegation and the (US) Department of State in response to this horrific attack,” said Kim Reynolds, governor of Iowa in the US, where the instructors were from.

They were sent by Cornell College in Iowa, which has been cooperating with Beihua University since 2018.

Almost all visuals and discussions about the incident have already been removed from social media in China.

Hu Xijin, a Chinese journalist known for his comments on security issues, “condemned” the attack.

“Regardless of the attacker’s motive, this incident is an isolated incident in the broader context of Chinese society. The overall sentiment of the Chinese public towards foreign tourists in markets and tourist places is friendly,” X said in the program.

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the incident “will not affect normal cultural exchanges between China and the United States.”

Notably, China reported at least three stabbing attacks that killed 13 people in Hubei, Yunnan and Hunan provinces last month.​​​​​​​

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