Chinese blogger stabbed after Beijing book talk

BEIJING (Reuters) - A popular Chinese blogger known for his satirical views was stabbed in the stomach on Saturday, following a reading of his book at a Beijing bookstore, according to a message posted on his blog.

Xu Lai's blog was one of many hosted on popular Chinese blog site bullog.cn, which was closed in January as part of a government crackdown on "vulgar" content on the Internet. It reappeared on bullog's successor, bullogger.com, which is based overseas.

Xu, who writes the "ProState in Flames" blog under the pseudonym Qian Liexian, was attacked in the second-floor bathroom of the bookstore and coffee shop in eastern Beijing after giving the talk.

"Classmate Qian Liexian was badly injured by unknown assailants with evil intent. We express our strong indignation," read a message posted on his blog by a representative.

"The latest news is that his operation was completed and he is resting peacefully."

The motive of the attackers, who ran out of the bookstore, is unknown. Violent crime is relatively rare in Beijing.

Officers answering the phones at the police stations responsible for that area of Beijing did not comment.

Xu's blog consisted of humorous news stories, witty commentary, corporate press releases and announcements from obscure local government websites.

China polices the Internet intensively, quickly removing any content deemed subversive or overly critical of the ruling Communist Party.