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China Refuses To Apologize To Australia Over Official's Tweet Of Doctored Image
Source: NPR
China Refuses To Apologize To Australia Over Official's Tweet Of Doctored Image
November 30, 2020 3:06 PM ET
BILL CHAPPELL
China is deepening its spat with Australia, refusing to apologize after a government official posted an altered image of an Australian soldier holding a knife to a young Afghan boy's throat. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had asked for an apology; instead, a Chinese government representative excoriated Australia for its troops' alleged brutality in Afghanistan.
"The Australian side has been reacting so strongly to my colleague's tweet," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said during a briefing Monday. "Why is that? Do they think that their merciless killing of Afghan civilians is justified but the condemnation of such ruthless brutality is not? Afghan lives matter!"
Hua was referring to a tweet by Zhao Lijian, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson known for his controversial statements, in which Zhao posted the heavily manipulated image and wrote, "Shocked by murder of Afghan civilians & prisoners by Australian soldiers. We strongly condemn such acts, &call for holding them accountable."
Zhao pinned the message to the top of his Twitter feed; the social media company has obscured the image with a warning that it contains "potentially sensitive content," but it did not remove the tweet, as Morrison says he requested.
-snip-
November 30, 2020 3:06 PM ET
BILL CHAPPELL
China is deepening its spat with Australia, refusing to apologize after a government official posted an altered image of an Australian soldier holding a knife to a young Afghan boy's throat. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had asked for an apology; instead, a Chinese government representative excoriated Australia for its troops' alleged brutality in Afghanistan.
"The Australian side has been reacting so strongly to my colleague's tweet," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said during a briefing Monday. "Why is that? Do they think that their merciless killing of Afghan civilians is justified but the condemnation of such ruthless brutality is not? Afghan lives matter!"
Hua was referring to a tweet by Zhao Lijian, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson known for his controversial statements, in which Zhao posted the heavily manipulated image and wrote, "Shocked by murder of Afghan civilians & prisoners by Australian soldiers. We strongly condemn such acts, &call for holding them accountable."
Zhao pinned the message to the top of his Twitter feed; the social media company has obscured the image with a warning that it contains "potentially sensitive content," but it did not remove the tweet, as Morrison says he requested.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.npr.org/2020/11/30/940155014/china-refuses-to-apologize-to-australia-over-officials-tweet-of-doctored-image
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Related:
• France and New Zealand join Australia's criticism of Chinese government tweet (The Guardian)
• UK and US lock in behind Australia in China row (The Guardian)