At least thirty-five people were killed and forty-three injured after a car plowed into a crowd on the afternoon of Tuesday, November 12, in Zhuhai, southern China, local police announced. “A serious and cruel attack occurred at the Zhuahu sports center, where a suspect ran over people who were training with a car, leaving 35 dead and 43 injured”police said in a statement.
The driver, a 62-year-old man, “He entered by force at the wheel of a small SUV and entered the city sports center, running over people who were training in the interior corridors”the police said. Driver arrested after stabbing himself with knife “and was sent to the hospital for treatment”according to the same source. He is in a coma after injuring his neck and “He is not fit to be interrogated”the police added.
Center closure
the chain bbc specifies that, according to the preliminary investigation, the attack was provoked by the suspect’s discontent over a disagreement related to his divorce. Investigations are still ongoing.
According to state media, one of the four hospitals in the region claimed to have treated around twenty injured people. As of Tuesday night, searches on Chinese social media about the incident had been heavily censored.
The Xiangzhou District Sports Center regularly attracts hundreds of residents, who can run on the athletics track or play soccer. Following the incident, the center announced its closure until further notice. This attack took place on the eve of the country’s largest aviation exhibition organized by the People’s Liberation Army, which is held every year in the city. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for “everything you need” to treat the wounded and hoped that the perpetrator would be “punished according to the law”.
