Security was tight in a popular Beijing diplomatic and entertainment district on Friday. This came after some Western countries issued a Christmas security warning for their citizens living in China on the previous day.
Beijing police issued a "yellow" security alert for Christmas and New Year in a statement on their official microblog. The second lowest level alert focused on areas like malls, which are likely to see more people visiting during the festivities.
The Snow Leopard Commando Unit and a police force have been dispatched to patrol in San-li-tun since the afternoon on Christmas Eve. On Friday, police conducted random checks of identification cards of people near the shopping area.
All the action came after the U.S. Embassy said in a brief statement it had "received information of possible threats" against Westerners in Sanlitun, also home to many embassies, on or around Christmas Day.
The French Embassy, Britain's Foreign Office and Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs issued similar warnings.
