China: Knife Attack Was Our '9/11'

Blames Uighurs, vows to respond with 'iron fists'
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 2, 2014 10:20 AM CST
China: Knife Attack Was Our '9/11'
The relative of a knife attack victim is assisted as he arrives at the Kunming Railway Station, in western China's Yunnan province, Sunday, March 2, 2014.   (AP Photo)

China is blaming Uighur separatists for yesterday's knife rampage that left 33 people dead, and state media isn't exactly downplaying the attack, notes the LA Times, calling it "a typical terrorist attack and also a severe crime against humanity. It was China’s 9/11." With four of the attackers among the dead and one in custody, Chinese authorities are still hunting at least another five; two of the attackers, including the one captured, are reportedly women. "A nationwide outrage has been stirred," said commentary published by state-run Xinhua, as per the Christian Science Monitor.

"Justice needs to be done and terrorists should be punished with iron fists." No one has taken responsibility for the attack. Meanwhile, the AP notes that authorities in Kunming were rounding up a small number of Uighurs for questioning. "How do we know them?" asked one Uighur man. "We could not tell if the assailants were Uighurs as they were all dressed in black. We did not like the attack either." (More knife attack stories.)

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