In a shocking incident at Beishan Park in the north-eastern province of Jilin, China, four instructors from Cornell College in Iowa were attacked on Monday while working with a local partner university. One of the victims, David Zabner, has now spoken out about the terrifying ordeal.

According to the police, a 55-year-old man with the surname Cui was arrested in connection with the attack. Zabner and his colleagues had gone to visit the picturesque Beishan Park when a man suddenly assaulted them with a knife. Zabner described the moment of the attack, saying, "I turned around to find a man brandishing a knife at me. I didn't immediately realize what was happening." It was then that he noticed he had been stabbed in the shoulder.

As of Tuesday, Zabner and the three other instructors were receiving treatment for their non life-threatening injuries in a hospital. Additionally, a Chinese tourist was also injured in the incident. The identities of the other victims have not been made public.

The police have labeled this attack as an isolated incident, rare for foreigners in China. They believe the assailant clashed with one of the American instructors before stabbing them. In an act of bravery, a Chinese tourist who tried to come to their rescue also got injured.

Zabner shared what the police informed him about the attacker, stating, "Police told us that he was unemployed and down on his luck, and that somebody in our group bumped into the man, and he decided to respond in the way he responded."

Images of the incident circulating online, showing the victims bleeding on the ground, seem to have been swiftly censored on China's internet.

Zabner's brother, Iowa Representative Adam Zabner, confirmed his identity as one of the victims. David Zabner was a Tufts University doctoral student on his second trip to China with Cornell College. The college established a partnership with Beihua University in 2018, allowing Cornell professors to live in China and teach a course over a two-week period.

In light of the tense diplomatic relations between Beijing and Washington, both countries have been seeking to re-establish people-to-people exchanges. Zabner had participated in the Cornell-Beihua program in 2019 to teach computer science classes.

The US State Department and Iowa's federal delegation are now working to bring Zabner back home. Representative Adam Zabner expressed gratitude that his brother survived the attack.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan also expressed concern about the incident. He stated that his team had been in contact with their Chinese counterparts and the victims, ensuring they receive assistance and appropriate law enforcement actions are taken.

The investigation into the attack is ongoing, and more details regarding the assailant's motives and the circumstances surrounding the incident are yet to be revealed.