Two people were killed and 14 injured yesterday when bombs aboard two public buses exploded during the morning rush hour in the city of Kunming , the capital of Yunnan province .
After initial investigations, the Public Security Bureau called the incident a deliberate act. Police would not comment on the motivation for the attack until they knew more.
Provincial security officials were quoted by local newspapers as saying time bombs were placed under passenger seats on the buses. On its website, the bureau confirmed that explosives were used.
Security in the province was immediately tightened. Authorities ordered the transport department to increase patrols and set up checkpoints to prevent the offenders from fleeing. Security was also stepped up at all border points.
The blasts were the latest episode in a series of disturbances on the mainland in the run-up to the August 8 opening of the Olympic Games. Villagers in Menglian county, also in Yunnan, rioted on Saturday, and there was a mass protest in Wengan county in Guizhou province last month over police handling of a teenager's death. The central government has also warned of possible terrorist attacks.
Both explosions involved bus Route 54, which runs through the centre of Kunming. The first explosion occurred on a bus at the Panjiawan stop on West Renmin Road at 7.10am. The second was at the nearby intersection of Changyuan Road and West Renmin Road at 8.05 am, Xinhua reported.
The first explosion killed Wang Dezhi, 30, and injured 10 others with one seriously injured. Chen Shifei , 26, was killed in the second blast, and four others injured. All the injured were sent to hospital, where one remained in a critical condition last night.