Car Rams Into Chinese Consulate in San Francisco

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Facts

  • On Monday, San Francisco police shot and killed a man who crashed his car into the lobby of the Chinese consulate.1
  • Police say that the crash happened at around 3:09 p.m. local time when an unidentified suspect drove his car into the visa office of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China. Witnesses say around 20 people were present, but no one besides the driver was injured.2
  • Police are coordinating with investigators from the US State Department and the Chinese Consulate, though, as of Tuesday morning, the identity of the driver, the motive for the crash, and the details of the shooting are still not publicly known.3
  • The incident saw the consulate temporarily shutter parts of its office, with China lodging 'solemn representations' to the US, urging authorities to make sure that the matter is properly investigated.4
  • Monday's incident comes ahead of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit set to be held in San Francisco in November.3
  • The San Francisco consulate has seen similar incidents in the past, with a man setting the main entrance of the building on fire in 2014.1

Sources: 1Associated Press (a), 2KTVU FOX 2, 3Associated Press (b) and 4BBC News.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by KTVU FOX 2. Although the details are yet to be fully released, the suspect seemingly set out to cause damage to the consulate's property and likely intended to cause grievous bodily injury to those inside. Luckily, local police were able to contain this situation, and the US is working quickly to deal with the incident and find answers regarding the motive and the identity of the suspect.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Global Times. While a swift investigation is a must, the San Francisco Chinese Consulate's history of similar violent incidents calls into question the efficacy of the US security. Rather than merely reacting to such incidents, the US must take preventative measures to ensure the safety of its consulate staff before such occurrences tarnish US diplomacy.