China has reaffirmed that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are its territory, underscoring that China has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the strait, said a spokesman for the central government at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday.
Chen Binhua, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks in response to an emergency search-and-rescue drill carried out by China's maritime safety authorities in the Taiwan Shoal, southern section of the Taiwan Strait, on Dec 6. After the exercise, a fleet of rescue vessels patrolled the central Strait and conducted law-enforcement operations.
"Both sides of the Taiwan Strait are China's territory, and China has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the strait. The purpose of the maritime management authorities under the Ministry of Transport carrying out regular safety supervision and management of navigation, docking, operations and other activities related to maritime traffic safety in the Taiwan Strait in accordance with the law is to maintain the navigational environment and order in these waters, and ensure safe, orderly and unimpeded maritime transportation. The DPP regime has ignored the factual and legal reality that Taiwan is part of China, and kept spreading fallacies advocating their secessionist agenda in an attempt to separate Taiwan from China. Their actions severely undermine peace and stability in the strait and they are bound to be hoisted by their own petard," Chen said.
China reaffirms sovereignty over Taiwan Strait
A fearless motorist has been hailed for his heroic actions after he bravely intervened to tackle a truck fire on a highway in north China, repeatedly risking his life as he crawled beneath the burning vehicle multiple times to tackle the flames before firefighters arrived.
The incident unfolded on a stretch of highway near Changzhi City of Shanxi Province, when a fire suddenly erupted around the blown-out left rear tire of a broken down truck.
Seeing the scene, a passing motorist surnamed Du did not hesitate as he pulled in at the roadside and leapt into action. As a member of a civilian rescue team with professional firefighting skills, Du retrieved a fire extinguisher from his vehicle and rushed towards the stricken truck, crawling underneath it to face the flames.
When that initial effort failed to tame the blaze, Du flagged down other drivers and borrowed fire extinguishers from their vehicles. Overall, he made no less than five trips under the truck in his bold fight against the fire, all while doing his best to ensure his own safety.
Thanks to Du's timely efforts, the fire was effectively contained as he prevented it from spreading further until help arrived.
Local firefighters soon reached the scene after receiving emergency calls and immediately went to work to suppress the flames using two water hoses, while Du and others helped maintain order nearby.
After 40 minutes of efforts, the fire was fully extinguished, with no casualties reported, thanks to Du's quick-thinking intervention.
Heroic motorist bravely crawls beneath burning truck to tackle blaze on highway
