THE police had arrested nine people on suspicion of violently beating several women in a barbecue restaurant in North China’s Hebei Province, local public security authorities said yesterday.

The incident occurred at around 2:40 a.m. Friday in Tangshan City. The suspects fled the scene after the attack, with some running to East China’s Jiangsu Province.

The suspects had all been caught as of Saturday, with the cooperation of police officers from Hebei and Jiangsu.

A senior official of Tangshan City has vowed to severely punish the attackers under the law, return justice to the injured, and maintain social stability following the incident.

The nine people include seven men and two woman, local police said.

Horrific footage of the women being assaulted sparked outrage on Chinese social media platforms with a focus on the protection of women and safeguarding public security.

The incident began when a man put his hand on a woman’s back in a restaurant and she pushed him away, surveillance footage showed.

The man is seen striking her before others drag her outside and continue attacking as she lies on the floor.

The group of men are also seen attacking her dining partners.

Two of the women were admitted to hospital and were in a stable condition, while two others sustained minor injuries, police said.

The video went viral online and discussion of the brazen attack in front of many other customers and waiters dominated China’s social media Saturday and yesterday.

On Saturday night, a police branch in another city, the Guangyang District Branch of the Langfang Public Security Bureau, had been designated to investigate the case, in an apparent effort to avoid local interfering.

(SD-Xinhua)