Shijiazhuang bombings

Shijiazhuang bombings
Jin Ruchao
Location Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China
Date March 16, 2001
Attack type
 Bombing
Weapons Bombs
Deaths 108
Non-fatal injuries
 38
Perpetrator Jin Ruchao

The Shijiazhuang bombings (Chinese: 靳如超爆炸案 or 石家庄“3·16”特大爆炸案) were a series of bomb blasts that took place in the city of Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China on March 16, 2001. A total of 108 people were killed,[1] and 38 others injured when within a short period of time several bombs exploded near four apartment buildings.[2]

Perpetrator

A single man, Jin Ruchao (C: 靳如超, P: Jìn Rúchāo),[3] was blamed and arrested for planning and carrying out the bombings. The People's Daily reported that he used taxis to get to each destination.[4] After pleading guilty, Jin was sentenced to death and executed, along with three others who supplied Jin with about 1,300 pounds of homemade explosives.[2] The investigation found that Jin was motivated by hatred for his ex-wife, ex-mother-in-law and a lover;[5] he had previously threatened to blow up their buildings.[5]

The explosives were made from ammonium nitrate and contained in plastic bags marked as "chicken feed".[6]

Jin paid 950 RMB ($115) to Wang Yushun, the owner of an illegal explosives workshop near Shijiazhuang.[6]

Aftermath

The attack was the biggest mass murder in China in decades.[7] Following widespread public fear, the Chinese Government published a lengthy description of the bombings.[8] Jin was arrested following a manhunt and a posted 100,000 RMB ($12,000) reward,[9] which had been doubled from an initial 50,000 RMB.[10] China scholar Andrew Scobell described it as perhaps the worst terrorist act in the history of the People's Republic of China.[11] There were rumours that Jin was a scapegoat with no knowledge of explosives,[9] and that the blast could have been orchestrated by disaffected ex-employees of who had been laid-off in China's restructuring.[9]

On 29 April 2001, Jin Ruchao, Wang Yushun (S: 王玉顺, T: 王玉順, P: Wáng Yùshùn), and Hao Fengqin (S: 郝凤琴, T: 郝鳳琴, P: Hǎo Fèngqín) received the death penalty for their roles in the bombings.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "China says 108 killed in blasts". BBC News. 17 March 2001. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 Kuhn, Anthony (April 19, 2001). "4 Sentenced for Blasts in China That Killed 108". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  3. ↑ "扭曲的心态--石家庄爆炸案主犯靳如超日记剖析". Sina.com. April 27, 2001. Archived from the original on August 18, 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
  4. ↑ Rennie, David (28 Mar 2001). "Chinese bomber 'went to his targets by taxi'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
  5. 1 2 "Hatred, Revenge Motive for Fatal Shijiazhuang Explosions". People's Daily. March 26, 2001. Archived from the original on August 18, 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  6. 1 2 Tang, Rose (March 27, 2001). "Bomber has confessed, China says". CNN. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  7. ↑ Gittings, John (20 March 2001). "Manhunt for mass killer fails to pacify Chinese". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  8. ↑ ROSENTHAL, ELISABETH (March 28, 2001). "Beijing Publishes Detailed Account of Bombings". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
  9. 1 2 3 "China blast reward doubled". BBC News. 20 March 2001. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
  10. ↑ Bodeen, Christopher (18 March 2001). "Chinese police in search for bomber". The Independent. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
  11. ↑ Martin I. Wayne, “China’s war on terrorism: counter-insurgency, politics, and internal security,” (New York, NY: Routeledge, 2008).
  12. ↑ "石家庄特大爆炸案终审宣判 元凶靳如超昨日伏法" (in Chinese). Sina.com. 2001-04-30. Retrieved 2009-06-08.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.