13 students injured in knife attack in China's Hainan province

New Delhi, May 20 (ANI): More than 10 men, armed with knives, burst into two dormitories at a vocational college in Hainan and slashed nine students, two of them seriously.

The pre-dawn attack took place in Haikou, the capital of South China's island province of Hainan at the Hainan Institute of Science and Technology.

The new attack has sparked fears in China, which is already on edge following a series of such horrific assaults.

Four students had been wounded in an earlier confrontation between the two groups, bringing the total number of injured to 13, according to local authorities.

The assailants attacked a guard and disabled a security camera before gaining access to the dormitories, The China Daily reports.

Among the wounded, two were severely injured, with one student having his hand cut off. Following eight hours of surgery at the Haikou City People's Hospital, their conditions were not considered to be life threatening.

Students from the school, who accompanied the injured to the hospital, said the violence began late on Tuesday when a confrontation took place at a food stall outside the campus with some men from surrounding villages, The China Daily reports.

Four students were attacked with knives in the incident and the police were called, they said, but left after questioning the students.

The villagers then called for reinforcements and attacked the school at about 2:30 am on Wednesday, witnesses said.

The violence has resulted in security being tightened at schools across China. (ANI)