Anger over Jackie Chan using car with military plates

Photographs showing actor Jackie Chan using a car with military plates - which carry exemptions from tolls and other fees - have spurred controversy in China, the South China Morning Post said.

In the snapshots posted on Weibo, China's counterpart to Twitter, the Hollywood star and two women are seen getting into the car.

There is nothing to indicate exactly when or where the photos were taken, but their posting on Weibo unleashed a torrent of angry comments about the abuse of military license plates in China.

Weibo users cited instances of officials' using vehicles with military plates while on personal business even as China's incoming president, Xi Jinping, has urged public servants to avoid extravagance.

In Chan's case, he was photographed in 2010 using a military-registered vehicle.

"Has our military hired Jackie Chan to teach the soldiers martial arts?," Yu Jianrong, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said on Weibo.

China's defense ministry announced Thursday that the army will adopt a new style of license plate in a bid to stop the spreading use of false military plates.