State media reports 7 killed in knife attack at China hospital

BEIJING – China's official Xinhua News Agency reported that six nurses and one janitor were killed early Thursday in a knife attack at a hospital in a northeastern resort town favored by the country's Communist Party elite.

Xinhua said a 27-yead-old man was believed to have carried out the attack in the seaside town of Beidaihe, about 185 miles east of Beijing. It gave no information about the alleged assailant's background or any motive for the killings.

China has in recent years seen a series of attacks on medical professionals by people who blame doctors and nurses for the deaths of relatives. The violence has led to strikes by doctors and nurses and prompted hospitals to hire additional security staff.

The location of Thursday's attack was likely to draw particular scrutiny from the Chinese public because Beidaihe is home to numerous holiday cottages and guesthouses used by China's leaders during the summer to vacation and hold informal meetings on government work.