December 17, 2001	Monday	Shawwal 1, 1422

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BEIJING, Dec 16: China on Sunday was probing 24 explosions which rocked three cities in just two days, with 20 bombs exploding in one city and elsewhere a blast ripping through a McDonald’s restaurant during a crowded dinner hour.

The bomb at a McDonald’s in Xian, the capital of northern Shaanxi province, happened at about 6:30 pm local time on Saturday when the eatery was packed with diners, the official Xinhua news agency said.

One man was killed and 28 injured, with two hurt seriously, the report said. Police were treating the blast as man-made and intentional.

A local journalist told AFP it appeared to be a suicide bombing, but it was unclear if the man who died was the perpetrator.

Police had not released his identity by Sunday, a police official told AFP. He declined to say whether separatists were involved or whether the perpetrator had targeted the McDonald’s store, which opened only two months ago and is the only McDonald’s in northwest China.

“It’s not as serious as some people might think. It appears to be an isolated incident,” he said.

The McDonald’s resumed business Sunday with the blast-damaged section cordoned off for police work.

Meanwhile, Xian police have stepped up security in the city, dispatching extra officers on patrol.

The blast followed 23 explosions that killed five and injured seven in two cities in southern Guangdong province early Friday.

Police Sunday said the blasts were the work of a local businessman, Lin Guojian, who targeted his brother-in-law for mistreating his sister and people with whom he had debt disputes.

Lin blew himself up in a suicide explosion, according to Xinhua.

Twenty of the explosions happened in Lin’s city of residence, Zhanjiang, near the southern tip of Guangdong province. The other three explosions happened at nearby Jiangmen city, where Lin originally lived.

The explosions went off at approximately the same time, between 4:50 am and 5:15 am, except for two occurring around two hours later, the People’s Daily website and Yangcheng Evening News said.

Some 20 of the bombs exploded within a 10-minute period, they added.

“Lin was greatly irritated by Wang Qixin, his former brother-in-law who had divorced his sister, and wanted to take revenge,” Xinhua said.

“Lin also placed explosives to attack other households having debt conflicts or other economic problems with him.”

The former chemical vendor, goldsmith and money lender had taught himself how to make bombs from books he bought a month ago, Xinhua said.

Lin set off the bombs electronically, using his mobile phone and beepers to explode at least some of them, the Nanfang Daily website said.—AFP