国内英语新闻:China cracks 278,000 criminal cases since January in public security campaign

BEIJING, Aug. 31(Xinhua) -- China has cracked 278,000 criminal cases and broken up nearly 1,650 mafia-style gangs since it launched a campaign to maintain public security in rural-urban fringe zones and on campuses in January.

About 256,000 suspects had been arrested as of Tuesday, according to a national working group on maintaining public security composed of officials from government agencies, including the Central Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Ministry of Public Security.

Investigating and rectifying public security threats remains an arduous task, said Wang Lequan, deputy secretary of the Commission.

The government will maintain its "strike hard" policy against mafia-style gangs, crimes involving guns and explosives, gambling, prostitution and drugs, Wang said. Authorities have "zero-tolerance" for such crimes, he added.