Hong Kong, July 2, (dpa/GNA) – A Hong Kong police officer was stabbed and seriously injured by an attacker who turned the knife on himself, police said Friday.
The 50-year-old attacker sustained serious chest injuries and later died in hospital, police said.
There was no clear motive, and he was described by the South China Morning Post newspaper as a “lone assailant.”
Police said they were investigating the case as an attempted murder and suicide.
A video of the incident circulating online shows how the attacker stabbed the 28-year-old police officer in the back from behind as he patrolled the street with his colleagues.
The attack took place on Thursday evening in the Causeway Bay area of Hong Kong, where extra police were deployed in case protesters took to the streets.
Thursday marked the anniversary of Hong Kong being handed back to China by Britain in 1997 as well as the 100th birthday of the Chinese Communist Party, the latter of which was being celebrated in Beijing.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam – who had attended the Beijing event – strongly condemned Thursday’s violence.
“After going through months of riots in the second half of 2019, members of the public abhor violence and treasure very much the stability of society since the implementation of the National Security Law last year,” Lam said.
This week marks a year since Beijing enacted the Hong Kong national security law, which authorities claimed would target a minority of extreme dissidents.
However critics say that many of the rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kongers since the 1997 handover to back China have been jeopardized under the law.
GNA