A ban on knife sales is in place at major supermarkets until the end of the National Day holiday, following two stabbing attacks in the capital.

Police said knives were removed from shelves at four major supermarket chains, including Carrefour and Wal-Mart, Jingkelong, and Tiankelong.

A Carrefour manager told Beijing Metro that sales would resume in mid-October, when the holiday is over.

It follows the stabbing of a woman on Dashilan, Beijing's oldest commercial street near Tian'anmen Square, on Saturday.

Police detained the alleged attacker, a 41-year-old man from Nanchang in Jiangxi province, at the scene.

The woman, who has not been identified, was slightly injured and taken to hospital.

On Thursday in the same area, another knife-wielding man stabbed two guards to death and wounded 14.

Police said the 46-year-old Chinese man Zhang Jianfei from Jilin province, was drunk at the time.

Police have stepped up patrols of the popular tourist area in recent days. Many foreigners spoken to by Beijing Metro yesterday said they did not believe the capital had a security problem.

Martin Miller, who has worked at a German bank in Beijing for five years, said he felt safe.

"I must say, with such a large population, Beijing has been a very safe city," the 43-year-old said in Chinese.

"With the police on the streets, I don't feel any less safe than in any other city in the world."

However, Chrikov Maxim, a Russian employee at the Russian embassy, said the attacks made him fear for his family's safety.

"I really hope Chinese police make greater efforts to protect our foreigners' interests, especially personal security and property safety," he said.

Danish tourist Torp Poulsen said China was safe compared to other countries in Asia.

"I feel quite safe in China and I am not worried about this incident at all," he said.

Gerard Hirat, a businessman from France, said: "I don't think places like Qianmen are dangerous to travel."

(China Daily September 22, 2009)