4 Cornell College lecturers injured in knife attack in China; suspect arrested

Four lecturers from Cornell College in Iowa were injured in a knife attack during a visit to a park in China, the college announced on Monday. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that none of the foreign nationals were seriously injured. It appears to be an “isolated incident.”

The lecturers were in the northeastern Chinese city of Jilin, teaching as part of a partnership program with a local university, Jonathan Brand, president of the college, said in a statement. The lecturers were accompanied by a faculty member from the college’s partner institution in China at the time of the attack, Brand added. None of the students at the small liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa, were participating in the program at the time.

Local police said Tuesday that a 55-year-old suspect had been arrested. Officials said the man stabbed all four Americans after one of them jostled him. Police said the suspect also stabbed a Chinese man who approached to intervene.

State Rep. Adam Zabner said his brother, David Zabner, who was traveling to China with Cornell for the second time, was one of the victims. According to Rep. Zabner, the group was visiting a local temple when they were attacked by a man with a knife. David Zabner, a graduate student at Tufts University who previously taught at Cornell, was stabbed in the arm and is currently recovering in the hospital, his brother said.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Lin Jian, spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry, said the incident was still under investigation, but police had tentatively concluded it may have been a random, isolated attack. The ministry does not expect the incident to affect “normal exchanges” between people in China and the United States, Lin said.

“Four foreign teachers from Beihua University in Jilin were attacked while visiting the city’s Beishan Park,” Lin told reporters on Tuesday. “All of the injured have been taken to hospital and received medical treatment. None of them are in critical condition. According to preliminary assessments, police believe this is an isolated incident. Further investigations are ongoing.”

“The cultural and people-to-people exchanges between China and the United States serve the common interests of both sides and are positively supported by various sectors of both countries,” she said, adding: “China is generally considered one of the safest countries in the world. China has taken effective measures and will continue to take corresponding measures to protect the safety of foreign nationals in China. We believe that the isolated incident will not disrupt the normal cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.”

Iowa Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks said her office was in contact with the U.S. Embassy in China to ensure that victims of the attack received appropriate care and were brought home safely.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said she was in contact with the state’s federal delegation as well as the State Department. “Please pray for their full recovery, their safe return, and for their families here at home,” Reynolds wrote on social media.