At least 10 casualties in a hospital attack in southwestern China, suspect arrested

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese state media are reporting a knife attack with possible deaths at a hospital in the country’s southwest.

The official Xinhua News Agency said there were more than 10 casualties in what it called a “vicious assault” on Tuesday in Yunnan province. An online post from Guizhou province television citing unnamed authorities said that two had died and 23 people were injured.

A suspect has been arrested, the Guizhou TV post said. The attack took place at Zhenxiong County People’s Hospital in Zhaotong city.

A witness told Red Star News, an online outlet, that he narrowly escaped the attack and that a doctor or doctors were among the injured. Video from the witness showed people who were bleeding and had fallen to the ground, and one older person trying to help another, Red Star social media post said.

Knife attacks have happened before in China, often at kindergartens. A man with a knife killed six people and wounded one other last July at a kindergarten in southeastern China’s Guangdong province.