Dozens of people were killed in Zhuhai, China, when a driver rammed a car into a crowd outside an army air show, police said

Bangkok – A driver killed 35 people and seriously injured another 43 when he deliberately rammed his car into people exercising at a sports center in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, police said Tuesday. Police arrested a 62-year-old man at the sports center in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai after a ramming attack late Monday, on the eve of the country’s main aviation exhibition of the People’s Liberation Army, which is held in the city every year.

Police identified the man only by his surname, Fan, which is consistent with authorities’ practice China.

According to the statement, Fan was discovered in the car with a knife, which is believed to have been self-harm to the neck. He is unconscious and is receiving medical attention.

A preliminary investigation revealed that he was unhappy with the division of assets in his divorce, police said.

Given the timing and location before the military air show, information about the incident was heavily censored, and officials did not release the death toll until the following day.

One of the four hospitals accepting people for treatment said it had more than 20 injured, state media reported on Monday.

Police identified the man only by his surname, Fan, which is in line with Chinese authorities’ practice. The police statement said the vehicle hit “several” pedestrians on Monday evening.

President Xi Jinping said in a statement on Tuesday that the driver should be punished under Chinese law.

A man in the emergency room of Zhuhai’s Shang Chong Hospital said they admitted some slightly injured people and most of them left after treatment. Zhuhai People’s Hospital said it had admitted the injured, but there was not a high number of injuries. Calls to Xiangzhou District People’s Hospital and Zhuhai Third People’s Hospital went unanswered.

Videos showed a firefighter performing CPR on a person Monday evening as people were asked to leave the scene. They were shared by news blogger and dissident Li Ying, better known on X as Teacher Li. His account publishes messages daily based on user posts. In the videos, dozens of people were lying on their stomachs on the running track in the sports center. In one, a woman can be heard saying, “The foot is broken.”

On Tuesday morning, searches for information about the incident on Chinese social media platforms were heavily censored. When searching for the Sports Center on Weibo, similar articles from Chinese media about Monday night’s incident were removed.

Chinese internet censors are paying particular attention to cleaning up social media before and during major events, such as the National People’s Congress meeting, where the government announces its key policy initiatives for the coming year.

The Xiangzhou District Sports Center regularly attracts hundreds of residents to run, play soccer and dance on the athletics field. Following the incident, the center announced it would remain closed until further notice.

There have been a number of attacks in China in which suspects appeared to target random people. including school children. In October, a 50-year-old man was arrested after he allegedly used a knife to attack children at a school in Beijing. Five people were injured. In September, three people were killed in a knife attack at a supermarket in Shanghai.