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Bomber Targets Government Building in North China

Two people were injured in a suspected revenge bombing at a government building in China, state media said Saturday, the second such attack attributed to disgruntled locals in recent weeks.

The detained suspect, a man surnamed Liu, allegedly set off the explosion in the northern city of Tianjin on Friday out of "revenge against society," Xinhua news agency reported.

Two people were slightly injured in the incident at a municipal government building in the Hexi district of Tianjin, a major city about 100 kilometers southwest of Beijing, the report said.

Calls to the Hexi district government offices went unanswered Saturday.

China sees thousands of protests and other public disturbances each year, often linked to anger over official corruption, government abuses and the illegal seizure of land for development.

Bomb attacks have been increasingly frequent in recent years and are typically carried out by individuals angry over perceived injustices, business disputes or other pressures associated with China's rapid modernization.

In late May, four people were killed and several injured in a series of similar explosions at government buildings in south China's Jiangxi province.

A 52-year-old man identified as Qian Mingqi allegedly triggered explosions at the parking garage of the city prosecutor's office and at two other district government offices in Fuzhou city.

In an Internet posting ahead of the bombings, Qian reportedly detailed alleged corruption by local officials in the eviction and demolition of two properties he owned and vowed revenge.

In another blast Thursday, one policeman was killed and two others injured when an explosion reduced to rubble parts of a multi-storey police station in Huangshi Township in Hunan province, the China Daily reported.

Local officials immediately said the accidental detonation of confiscated explosives was the cause of the blast, but numerous postings on the Internet maintained the explosion was a revenge attack against corrupt police.

Source: Agence France Presse


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