A Chinese charter plane carrying coffins of 11 Chinese workers killed in Afghanistan arrived in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province Monday night, where 10 of the casualties were from.
Chinese central government agencies and local governments, concerned companies, the relatives, Afghan vice-minister for public works Mohammad Yaqub and Afghan Ambassador to China Qiamuddin Rai Barlas attended a receiving ceremony at the Changbei Airport.
Sun Gang, vice governor of Jiangxi Province, on behalf of the Chinese government, expressed condolence to the casualties and sympathy to the relatives, saying the local government will do its utmost to help the relatives' living.
Yaqub, on behalf of the Afghan government, appreciated the Chinese government and Chinese people for their help in the reconstruction of Afghanistan, saying the terrorists' conspiracy to ruin the Afghanistan-China friendship will never be success.
Ten of the casualties' remains were transported to the Shangrao City, the victims' home, after the receiving ceremony. The other one will be cremated in Nanchang and brought back to his hometown in east China's Shandong Province by the relatives.
Those workers were killed in a terrorism attack in a project compound in Jelogir area, 36 kilometers away of Kunduz city in Afghanistan last Thursday, five others injured.
Chinese leaders, including President Hu Jintao, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Wu Bangguo and Premier Wen Jiabao strongly condemned the attack, instructed related Chinese government agencies to spare no efforts in rescuing the wounded and help the living of the relatives.
Chinese government departments, involving the Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Commerce, local governments and concerned companies have carried out different measures, such as sending working groups, to deal with the aftermath.
International communities also expressed deep concern over the incident. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, UN Security Council, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, French President Jacques Chirac, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi strongly condemned the terrorism attack.
(Xinhua News Agency June 15, 2004)
