Beijing says stabbing of Japanese nationals in Shanghai a single incident

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Wednesday that the stabbing by a Chinese man of three people, two of whom were Japanese, was a single incident. ‘The authorities have issued a statement. This is a single incident carried out by one person and concerns public safety,’ Guo Jiakun told reporters in Beijing. He said that on Tuesday (19 May) in a restaurant in Shanghai, a man with mental health problems injured one Chinese national and two Japanese nationals with a knife. ‘The victims were promptly transported to hospital. The suspect has also been detained by police, and the case is under further investigation,’ he added. He noted that the competent Chinese authorities will handle the case in accordance with the law. ‘The attacker has been identified as a person with mental illness. I must warn against the tendency of some media and individuals to create false associations and to exaggerate the incident,’ Guo Jiakun said. A man armed with a knife attacked three people in Pudong District, Shanghai on Tuesday afternoon at a Japanese restaurant located in the Shanghai World Financial Center. According to a senior official at the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the three victims are two Japanese men and a Chinese woman. All were taken to hospital but their injuries were not life-threatening. Police have detained a 59-year-old man at the scene. According to local police, the man has a history of mental illness, spoke unclearly and displayed suspicious behaviour. Following the incident, the Japanese Embassy in China issued a notice advising Japanese nationals in China to be vigilant and to travel in groups. The Japanese government also urged the Chinese authorities to investigate the incident, to punish those responsible, and to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals. Attacks on Japanese nationals have occurred several times in China. In June 2024, a Japanese mother and daughter were attacked with a knife while waiting for a school bus in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. A Chinese woman who attempted to intervene died in the incident. In September 2024, a 10-year-old Japanese boy was stabbed to death on his way to school in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Then in July 2025, again in Suzhou, a Japanese woman and her child were injured after being struck with a blunt object. These attacks are taking place amid rising tension in China-Japan relations. The relationship between Beijing and Tokyo has been strained since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks in November 2025 about any Chinese military action toward Taiwan potentially justifying Japan’s deployment of its military. China has responded with diplomatic protests and economic measures against Japan.