Taiwanese authorities have sent out an emergency message following the launch of a Chinese satellite over the island’s airspace.
The mobile phone alert was sent on Tuesday as Chinese state media confirmed the launch of a science satellite. The alarm came amid preparations in Taiwan for elections next week. China, which claims the island as its own, is watching closely and warns that the result could further raise tension in the Taiwan Strait. “China launched [a] satellite which flew over the southern airspace,” said the alert sent out in Chinese. “Public, please beware of your safety.”
An English-language version announced it as an “air raid alert” and warned of a “missile flyover Taiwan airspace”.
However, the defence ministry later apologised for the mistake, saying the default message in English had not been updated.
The alert came as Foreign Minister Joseph Wu was holding a news conference in Taipei ahead of the presidential and parliamentary elections on Saturday.
He assured those present that the alert was for a satellite.
Credit: aljazeera.com
