A recent wave of violence at schools has caused widespread fears over the safety of students in China
A policeman shows teachers how to apprehend an attacker at a school in Beijing
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.
The assailants attacked a guard and disabled a security camera before gaining access to the dormitories.
Among the wounded, two were severely injured, with one student having his hand cut off. Following eight hours of surgery at the Haikou City People's Hospital, their conditions were not considered to be life threatening.
Students from the school, who accompanied the injured to the hospital, said the violence began late on Tuesday when a confrontation took place at a food stall outside the campus with some men from the surrounding villages.
Four students were attacked with knives in the incident and the police were called, they said, but left after questioning the students.
The villagers then called for reinforcements and attacked the school at about 2:30 am on Wednesday, witnesses said.
According to school authorities, all students were required to return to the college before 8.30 pm on Wednesday to assist the police with their investigation.
The attack follows five separate assaults against school children, some as young as 3, in the last two months, which have left 17 dead and more than 50 wounded, including some adults.
The violence has resulted in security being tightened at schools across China, with nervous parents accompanying their children to and from school, while police and security guards are now permanently posted at school gates.
Thirteen vocational students were hurt in China Wednesday -- including one who had a hand chopped off -- when they were attacked by youths with cleavers, after a string of violent school assaults.
The incident just after midnight on the southern island of Hainan comes after a series of savage attacks at schools and kindergartens around the country that have left 17 dead, including 15 young children.
At around midnight, students at the Hainan Technology and Vocational Institute in the city of Haikou got into an argument with the youths as the students held a barbecue near their school, the Xinhua state news agency said.
Four students were injured in the initial clash but a group of youths stormed into the school's dormitory two hours later, attacking nine more, it said.
According to the China News Service, one student had a hand cut off during the clash, while the others were slightly injured.
There was a history of bad blood and altercations involving students at the institute and the local youths, the report added.
Vocational education is generally for students in their late teens or early 20s.
A recent wave of violence has caused widespread fears over public safety in China with more than 80 injured in five previous attacks at schools and kindergartens over the past two months.
All the previous attacks were carried out by lone assailants, two of whom committed suicide. A third, a former doctor who killed eight children on March 23, has been tried and executed, while another attacker was sentenced to death on Saturday.
In response to the violence, police and schools have been ordered to beef up security in and around campuses amid fears of more copycat attacks by disturbed or disgruntled assailants.
Last week, Premier Wen Jiabao said long-standing social concerns were partially to blame for the attacks.
"We need to resolve the deep-seated causes that have resulted in these problems," Wen said in an interview with Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television.
"This includes handling social contradictions, resolving disputes and strengthening mediation at the grassroots level."
In a separate incident this week, a man who had been drinking alcohol barged into a primary school classroom with a knife and a home-made gun in northern China's Inner Mongolia region, China National Radio reported Wednesday.
The man was wrestled to the ground by a teacher and detained by police in the incident Monday, it said. It made no mention of any students being hurt.
The man had served a previous prison term, said the report, which did not specify what crime he had committed or give his name or age.
