The US and UK Embassies warned of a “possible threat” against Westerners in or around Christmas Day in the popular expat area of Sanlitun in Beijing just days before Christmas, but fortunately nothing came to pass. The warning was posted to the US Embassy’s official website along with being mailed out to US citizens residing in the capital.

In the warning, the US Embassy said it has given the same advice to American government personnel, and urged US citizens to “exercise heightened vigilance” during this time.

Last August, Sanlitun was the scene of a deadly incident in which a Chinese man with a sword attacked a French national and his Chinese wife, causing the death of the latter. Social media speculated that the attacker had anti-foreigner sentiments, something that hadn’t been clarified by Chinese police or the Chinese press.

The full UK Embassy warning is as follows:

The U.S. Embassy has received information of possible threats against Westerners in the Sanlitun area of Beijing, on or around Christmas Day.  U.S. citizens are urged to exercise heightened vigilance.  The U.S. Embassy has issued the same guidance to U.S. government personnel.

• The State Department’s Worldwide Travel Alert message remains in effect.
• Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive security messages and make it easier to locate you in an emergency.
• Contact the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, located at 55 An Jia Lou Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, by phone at (+86 10) 8531-4000, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., or by email at[email protected]. For AFTER HOURS EMERGENCIES, call 8531-3000 to speak to the operator.
• Call 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States or Canada or 1-202-501-4444 from other countries, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday (except federal holidays).

Beijing police responded by increasing its police presence in medium to large sized shopping malls and supermarkets during Christmas and New Year. The police have also raised the public security threat level to “yellow”, the third-highest level in a rating system out of four levels.

As reported by Shanghai Daily, the Beijing police are out in force in Wangfujing and Nanluoguxiang as well as churches around Dongcheng District. There’s no mention of Sanlitun in the report, the area that was specifically named in the US Embassy warning.