Honors for police officers killed on duty

A memorial service was held on Friday for Xue Yongqing and Yuan Shuai, two police officers killed on duty in a shooting in north China's Hebei Province.

Xue and Yuan from the public security bureau of Suning County, were killed while hunting suspect Liu Shuangrui who allegedly shot dead two fellow villagers and injured three others with a shotgun this week. He also injured two other police officers during the manhunt. Liu was later found dead in his home.

The two officers were declared martyrs by Hebei Provincial government. Xue was also given the highest police honor by the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

A senior MPS official said Xue and Yuan "will always be remembered."

This year at least 20 police officers were reported killed on duty, according to a Thursday report by People's Daily Online. The report cited figures from the MPS as saying that a total of 393 police officers were killed on duty in 2014, a record low in the last 20 years.

The Chinese government began to buy life insurance for police officers early this year, a bid to further protect officers and their families from violent crime.

The funeral of Xue's wife Liu Wenjuan, who jumped to her death after Xue was killed was also held today. The ministry statement said she had been distraught with grief. Endi