Briefly

BEIJING

Former bank VP took bribes, SPP alleges

He Xingxiang, former vice-president of China Development Bank, has been arrested on suspicion of accepting bribes and issuing financial bills in violation of regulations, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Sunday. He was also accused of granting loans illegally and concealing overseas bank deposits, it said in a statement. The case was transferred to prosecutors after an investigation by the National Supervisory Commission, it said.

Education authorities deny virus jab claim

The Beijing Municipal Education Commission denied an online rumor on Sunday that claimed children not vaccinated against COVID-19 would be barred from schools or would be subjected to nucleic acid tests for the novel coronavirus every 48 hours. The commission said vaccination cannot be a prerequisite for children's participation in educational activities at schools or kindergartens. It said it had always put children's safety and health first, adding that vaccination should be conducted according to informed, consenting and voluntary principles.

5,000 cultural relics unearthed last year

Beijing unearthed about 5,000 sets of cultural relics last year, a spokesperson for the city's cultural heritage bureau said Sunday, with progress made in archaeological work and the conservation of major sites. Liu Hongchang, a spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Cultural Heritage Bureau, told a news conference the city conducted 120 excavations covering an area of 116,000 square meters last year. Four archaeological sites in Beijing－the Zhoukoudian site, Liulihe River site, Dabaotai Tomb of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) and Dingling Mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)－were named among China's top 100 archaeological discoveries of the past century last year, Liu said. The first Beijing Public Archaeology Season was successfully held to create more public awareness of archaeology, Liu said, noting that more efforts will be made to advance the development of cultural heritage undertakings in the Chinese capital this year.

LIAONING

One dead, 42 injured in city bus explosion

At least one person was killed and 42 injured in a bus explosion in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning province, at around 6 pm on Saturday, local police said. Two of the injured are in serious condition, the Shenyang public security bureau said on its micro blog. Police and emergency authorities rushed to the scene after the explosion, it said, adding that an investigation is underway.

China Daily - Xinhua