(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-02-04 21:12

BEIJING -- State leaders and heads of government from more countries have sent letters of sympathy to Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao since Sunday over the recent snow havoc in southern China.

Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Lesotho's Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili and Cuba's First Vice President Raul Castro said they are deeply sympathetic to the Chinese people suffering from the havoc caused by the heavy snowfalls.

They praised the Chinese government and its people for their undaunted spirit in the fight against the bad weather.

They expressed the belief that the Chinese government and its people will be able to tide over the disaster and resume normal life in the snow-stricken areas soon.

They also wished the Chinese people a happy Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year.
Heavy snowfalls and extreme cold weather have paralyzed China's traffic system and caused power cuts in many areas of the country.

Statistics show that the snow has so far killed at least 60 people and forced the evacuation of nearly 1.76 million. From January 25 to 31, a total of 5.8 million passengers were stranded on the railway network and more than 8,000 cargo trains were affected.