Chinese kindergarten attacked, several reported dead

BEIJING (Reuters) - A man wielding a machete burst into a kindergarten in eastern China, Hong Kong media said on Wednesday, killing at least four children and injuring a dozen people in what appeared to be a new outbreak of traumatic school violence.

Chinese state media remained silent on the attack, but residents said it occurred on Tuesday.

A nurse in the emergency ward of a hospital in Zibo in Shandong province confirmed the stabbings, though said she had been told to keep quiet about it.

"We can't say anything more about this. Our leaders have told us that only the government can say anything about this," the nurse told Reuters, declining to be identified.

Hong Kong's Ming Pao newspaper said at least four children had been killed, and around a dozen children and teachers had been injured.

State media have previously reported on a string of assaults on schools earlier this year.

Chinese officials often prevent domestic media from reporting similar incidents for fear of provoking copycats, or when they do not wish to distract from more positive news. Multiple calls to the Zibo government and police went unanswered.

A worker at the Boshan District Commercial Kindergarten in Zibo told Reuters the attack happened at the Boshan District Experimental Kindergarten.

The website (http://szbssy.ankang06.org) of the Experimental Kindergarten made no direct reference to any attack and calls to it went unanswered. But a comment on the kindergarten website on Tuesday appeared to obliquely mention it.

"We're so upset ... The worst thing that could have happened has happened by our very side ... The poor children!" said the comment.

Wednesday marks 100 days until the opening ceremony of the Asian Games in Guangzhou, an event authorities hope to highlight with a celebration in style, including a gala performance on state television.

More than 27 people have died and at least 80 have been injured in knife and cleaver attacks since March, mostly in schools, prompting worries about a social malaise as a consequence of China's rapid economic growth.

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Ron Popeski)