Students attacked in dormitory rampage

HAIKOU - More than 10 men armed with knives burst into two dormitories at a vocational college early on Wednesday and slashed nine students, two of them seriously, sparking new fears in a country already on edge following a series of 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 predawn attack took place in Haikou, the capital of South China's island province of Hainan, when more than 10 men burst into two dormitories at the Hainan Institute of Science and Technology and randomly started hacking at students.