Hong Kong security officials have dismissed a Pakistani news report that terrorists are planning to strike at Hong Kong and Chinese hotels in an apparent bid to upset a major World Trade Organisation conference.
A report on the website of one of Pakistan's largest English-language newspapers, Dawn, dated Tuesday, quoted an unidentified source as saying the Chinese consulate-general in Karachi had received an anonymous fax message warning of attacks on hotels in Hong Kong and China soon.
The source said fundamentalist religious groups and a Muslim fighters' network in China were planning to carry out the bombings.
The report comes just weeks before the World Trade Organisation meeting in Hong Kong scheduled for December 13-18, which aims to lay the groundwork for a new treaty liberalising world trade.
Hong Kong Secretary for Security Ambrose Lee said on Thursday there was no evidence to support the reported threat.
Safest city
"We will analyse all reports and be on high alert. But for now, there is no sign indicating that we are the target of a terrorist attack," Lee said.
"People can rest assured that Hong Kong is still the safest city."
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"People can rest assured that Hong Kong is still the safest city"
Ambrose Lee,
Hong Kong Secretary for Security |
Police Commissioner Dick Lee also said Hong Kong had nothing to fear.
"This kind of report occurs from time to time. Judging from this one, the likelihood is not high," he said.
The report in Dawn said law-enforcement agencies and immigration authorities in Pakistan and China have been put on high alert after the alleged threat.
The Chinese consulate-general in Karachi could not be reached for comment on Thursday.