China park stabbing: US envoy ‘angered’ by attack on American instructors, tourist
- Four victims from Cornell College in Iowa and a Chinese tourist are said to be recovering in Jilin hospital; suspect has been detained by police
Washington’s envoy to Beijing said on Tuesday that he was “angered and deeply troubled” by a knife attack on four instructors from an Iowa college, an incident that China’s foreign ministry has said is under investigation.
The ministry confirmed earlier that the instructors from Cornell College had been attacked in a park in the northeastern province of Jilin on Monday, calling it an isolated incident and playing down concerns about any impact on bilateral relations.
“I am angered and deeply troubled by the stabbing of 3 US citizens + a non-citizen resident of Iowa in Jilin, China,” Ambassador Nicholas Burns said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“A US Consular Officer visited the 4 in Jilin Hospital today where they are receiving treatment,” Burns said. “We are doing all we can to help them and hope for their full & speedy recovery.”
Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters on Tuesday that police were investigating after the Americans, from Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, were stabbed in a park in the province’s Jilin city.
