Man injures children in China knife rampage

Five of the children suffered serious injuries but none of them was in life-threatening condition, officials in the city of Pingxiang said on Wednesday.

The man gained entry to the premises by telling the staff he was picking up his child. He then "sneaked into" the building and started his stabbing rampage in his child's class while the students were eating, according to the authorities. Two teachers allegedly fought back with plastic chairs.

The police rushed to the scene, arrested the 41-year-old alleged perpetrator and transported the children to the hospital.

Series of stabbings

Police launched an investigation and the officials identified the man as a resident of the nearby Nanshan village. The motivation for the attack, however, was not immediately clear, according to Chinese outlet "The Paper."

Violent crime is relatively rare in China, with tough gun laws keeping firearms out of private hands. However, the country has seen several attacks involving blades in recent years, occasionally targeting schools and children.

Most notably, a Muslim separatist group organized the 2014 Kunming massacre when eight attackers simultaneously attacked a train station and killed around 30 people.

dj/se (AP, dpa, Reuters)