An employee of the Israeli embassy in Beijing was repeatedly stabbed this Friday, in broad daylight. The apparent attack occurred in the middle of the street, outside a supermarket and far from the Israeli legation. The attack has been witnessed by several people, without anyone daring to intervene. The aggressor, tall and middle-aged, fled bloodied and limping, carrying a large knife and a sports bag.
After a few minutes, the police, who had been alerted by telephone, attended to the victim, who was leaning on a car and who was able to tell what happened thanks to the intervention of a passerby who spoke English. The man, who identified himself as an employee of the Israeli embassy – as his Foreign Ministry later confirmed – was taken by patrol car to the hospital, where his condition is stable.
The incident has coincided with the often postponed visit to the Chinese capital of the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell. The dramatic situation in Gaza and its surroundings should have been one of the star topics of today’s meeting between Borrell and the Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, who has reported the death of three of his fellow citizens in the area. Two more would be missing.
An unverified video would show today’s aggression in the Xinyuanli area, northeast of Beijing and near the diplomatic district. According to some witnesses, the attacker, bald, tall and middle-aged, “did not look Chinese.”
