Two Chinese citizens were arrested today on suspicion of damaging the Great Wall of China with a bulldozer. The reason apparently surprised the authorities as well.
This bizarre story took place in Shanxi province in northern China. According to state broadcaster CCTV, authorities there received a report a little more than a week ago about a passage that had been breached in the wall.
Two individuals have been detained for "cutting off" a section of the Ming Great Wall with an excavator in northern China to shorten their distance to a worksite. The section of the Great Wall is a provincial-level cultural relic with significant protection and research value.... pic.twitter.com/ZRJ7aKrcPX
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) September 4, 2023
At the end of an investigation, a 38-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman were arrested and, according to the findings, demolished the wall to create a shortcut.
According to provincial authorities, the wall sustained irreparable damage. It dates from the Ming dynasty (1644–1368) and is designated as a local cultural heritage site. The Great Wall of China as a whole was designated a World Heritage Site in 1987.
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