XIAN, China, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Five Roman Catholic nuns in China were severely beaten and hospitalized for resisting the sale of land claimed by their church in the city of Xian.
The attack occurred Nov. 23 on the disputed parcel of land adjacent to the city's main state-sanctioned Catholic church, the Southern Cathedral, The Washington Post reported Friday. Xian is about 600 miles southwest of Beijing.
Witnesses said thugs armed with sticks and clubs assaulted the nuns when they tried to stop the demolition of an elementary school on the land which the government wants to sell to a real estate developer, the Post reported.
One of the nuns was blinded in the attack and has recovered the use of only one eye, and another nun was scheduled for surgery on her spine, the report said. A third was recovering with a broken arm, and two others suffered serious head injuries.
China's state-run news media have not reported the attack, The Post said. The Vatican said, "The violence committed in Xian against several defenseless nuns can only be firmly condemned."
