China approves wide-ranging counter terrorism law

China's governing body has passed its first-ever counter-terrorism bill, which it says will help address rising terror threats at home and boost international security. An Weixing, an official with the public security ministry, told journalists Sunday that terror attacks were a rising issue in China. "Terrorist attacks have caused heavy losses of people's lives and properties, posing a serious threat to our security, stability, economic development and ethnic unity," the state-run Xinhua news agency quoted the official as saying.