Former Chinese ambassador Wu Jianmin dies in car accident

Wu Jianmin, former Chinese ambassador to France, died in a car accident early Saturday morning in Wuhan, capital of the central province of Hubei, according to the Foreign Ministry.

A press release from the ministry's spokesperson office said Wu was traveling to Wuhan University to give a lecture, and the cause of the accident is still the subject of investigation.

The city's public security bureau said Wu was on his way to the city from the airport when the accident happened around 4 a.m..

According to a statement issued by the bureau, the commercial vehicle carrying five people crashed into the flower bed in the middle of the road while running out of an underpass.

The five were rushed to hospital, and two of them, including Wu and a university instructor named Zhu Xiaochi, died despite medical efforts, said the statement. Injuries of the other three are not life threatening.

Wu, 77, used to be president of China Foreign Affairs University from 2003 to 2008, and was elected president of the Bureau of International Expositions in 2003.

(APD)