A man in a wheelchair detonated a home-made explosive in Beijing airport this evening, injuring himself and sending smoke billowing through the exit area of the international arrivals section of Terminal 3.
Officials said the bomber was being treated for his injuries.
State broadcaster China Central Television said the explosion took place just meters outside the door from which arriving international passengers depart after picking up their luggage. It was not clear why the man was at the airport. An airport spokeswoman declined to speculate about the man’s motive, saying airport police were still investigating.
Individual Chinese unable to win redress for grievances have in the past resorted to extreme measures, including bombings, but such incidents are rare amid the tight security of airports, and the motive in this case is not yet known.
There were no other injuries and operations were normal after the blast, the airport said on its microblog, while official news agency Xinhua said the man detonated a loud explosive device, but gave no details.
A Reuters witness said things had returned to normal about 90 minutes after the explosion and there were no signs of extra security.
Reuters