Nine Chinese mine workers were killed in an attack in the Central African Republic, sparking a rare call on Monday from China’s President Xi Jinping for the perpetrators to be “severely” punished.

The attack by “armed men” happened at about 5:00 am near Bambari, said the central town’s mayor Abel Matchipata.
Matchipata told AFP that “nine bodies and two wounded” had been counted, adding that the victims were Chinese workers at a site run by the Gold Coast Group, 25 kilometres (15 miles) from his town.

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China’s foreign ministry confirmed the toll, and Xi called on authorities in the Central African Republic to “severely punish” those behind the killings.

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