A hit-and-run attack at a sports center in Zhuhai, a city in southern China, has killed 35 people and left 43 severely injured.
According to Reuters, the incident occurred at 7:48 p.m. on Monday, November 11, when a small off-road vehicle was driven into a large group of people exercising at the sports complex.
In a statement on Tuesday, Zhuhai police said the suspect, a 62-year-old man named Fan, was receiving medical treatment at a hospital after injuring himself with a knife inside his car.
A video of the scene showed at least 20 people lying on the ground with shouts of “terrorist” being heard as ambulances arrived to transport the injured to the hospital.
Fan was arrested by police after attempting to flee, meanwhile authorities revealed that he had self-harmed with a knife, causing severe neck injuries.
Police said their early investigation suggests that Fan’s attack was likely triggered by his unhappiness after getting divorced.
After the incident, President Xi Jinping ordered full efforts to treat the injured and demanded strict punishment for the attacker.
The central government has also sent a team to provide guidance on handling the case, Chinese state television CCTV cited.
Earlier in October, a knife attack in Beijing left five people injured outside one of the city’s top primary schools. Similarly a Japanese student was fatally stabbed outside his school in Shenzhen.
