Several girls raped, school confirms

Authorities in Yunxian county, Yunnan province, confirmed that they are investigating sexual assaults against at least three high school girls. The confirmation comes days after allegations surfaced in the media that a dozen or more girls had been forced into prostitution.

The county's news office released a statement on Thursday saying the police had detained two suspects. The statement confirmed that at least three junior high school girls had been sexually assaulted.

Yunnan Satellite Television reported that a number of female students at Minzu Middle School in Yunxian had been forced into prostitution, allegedly by a local woman surnamed Xu.