China expressed its "strong dissatisfaction" and reiterated a call for a ceasefire in Lebanon after three of its peacekeepers were injured by what seemed to be a Hezbollah mortar bomb Sunday.
"China expresses its serious concern and strong dissatisfaction," foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement on the ministry's website.
"China has made representations with the relevant parties in the conflict and has demanded that practical steps be taken to ensure the safety of United Nations peacekeepers," he said.
Qin said China urged "all sides to cease hostilities and return to the path of negotiotations and political solutions as soon as possible."
Earlier in the day Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing made a similar call for an end to hostilities in a telephone conversation with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.
Qin's statement did not identify the source of the mortar bomb that slightly injured the three.
"China has extended its warm greetings to the injured people and has requested that the relevant authorities continue to give them the medical treatment they need in a timely fashion," Qin said.
A Chinese national was among four UN observers killed in an Israeli air strike on a UN position in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam on July 25.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan attacked Israel for its "apparently deliberate targeting" of the UN position while China summoned Israel's ambassador in Beijing and demanded an apology.
