The Philippines on Friday denounced China’s alleged assault of Vietnamese fishermen in the South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing are also locked in violent confrontations that have led to fears of armed conflict. Vietnam has accused “Chinese law enforcement forces” of beating the 10 fishermen with iron bars and robbing them of thousands of dollars’ worth of fish and equipment on Sunday off the Paracel Islands. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson acknowledged an incident took place there, but disputed the Vietnamese version of the events.

Phl condemns China attack of Vietnam fishermen. (2024, October 6). The Philippine Star, p. 4.