Briefly

37,000 cases cracked for cross-border gambling

Chinese police resolved 37,000 cases of cross-border gambling in 2022, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement on Thursday. Since the beginning of 2022, police operations nationwide busted over 2,600 online gambling platforms, more than 1,100 casinos, as well as in excess of 2,500 illegal payment platforms and underground banks, according to the statement. Some 1,200 technical support teams and 1,600 platforms promoting gambling were dealt with this year. The ministry added that police managed to resolve 19 major cases during a three-month crackdown targeting cross-border gambling. Joint efforts by the ministry and other departments will be intensified to create a healthy social atmosphere that opposes gambling, according to the statement.

Former political advisor pleads guilty to bribery

Xiao Yi, former vice-chairman of the Jiangxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, stood trial at the Intermediate People's Court of Hangzhou in East China's Zhejiang province on Thursday, accused of taking bribes and abusing his power. Xiao was charged with accepting money and valuables worth 125 million yuan ($17.91 million), according to prosecutors. He allegedly took advantage of his position to assist individuals on matters related to the contracting of construction projects, the development of business programs and personal promotion between 2008 and 2021, when he held various successive posts. In his final statement, Xiao pleaded guilty and expressed remorse. A verdict will be announced in due course.

Dinosaur fossils discovered in Yunnan

Dinosaur fossils have been discovered in nine localities in Southwest China's Yunnan province since the end of 2020, the information office of the Yunnan government said on Wednesday. An emergency excavation of these dinosaur fossils will soon be undertaken by the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The fossils, located in the city of Lufeng, Wuding county, and Shuangbai county in Chuxiong Yi autonomous prefecture respectively, are buried shallowly and the shapes of the bones can be easily recognized, said Chen Jun, deputy director of the provincial department of natural resources, adding that some fossils have been exposed to the surface due to rain.

100th China-developed ARJ21 jetliner delivered

The 100th ARJ21 aircraft was delivered to clients on Thursday, bringing China's first indigenously developed passenger jetliner to a new stage of mass production and large-scale operation. Industry insiders say the delivery of 100 ARJ21 planes shows that the operational performance of the aircraft is on par with similar, mainstream aircraft types, and that the safety and reliability of the ARJ21 have been fully tested by airlines and the civil aviation market. Currently, the 100 ARJ21 aircraft are operating on 316 flight routes connecting 118 cities and have safely carried nearly 6 million passengers to date, according to the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, which developed the plane.

Xinhua