Fierce anti-Japan protests erupted in more than a dozen Chinese cities after a group of Japanese activists landed on islands at the centre of an increasingly acrimonious territorial dispute.
| One banner said: "Even if China is covered with graves, we must kill all Japanese." |
The most serious protests appeared to be in Chengdu, where the mob overturned a Japanese-made police car, and in the southern city of Shenzhen, where rioters smashed the windows of Japanese restaurants and businesses.
In one image posted on Sina Weibo, China's version of Twitter, the crowd in Chengdu appeared to be tens of thousands strong. One banner said: "Even if China is covered with graves, we must kill all Japanese."
In another demonstration, an estimated 1,000 people chanted anti-Japanese slogans in the city of Hangzhou and caused damage to Japanese cars and restaurants.
Other disturbances were reported in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, Harbin and Qingdao.
The demonstrations were sparked after a group of Japanese nationalists landed on Uotsuri island, part of an uninhabited archipelago that is claimed by both nations.
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