Police seize a simulated gangster during an emergency drill in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, earlier this month. The scenario involved a female audience member at a sports event who was kidnapped by two gangsters with knives. MA YUAN/CHINA DAILY

China's top legislature on Sunday adopted the country's first counter-terrorism law in the latest attempt to address terrorism at home and help maintain world security.

Lawmakers approved the legislation Sunday afternoon at the end of a week-long bimonthly session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee. All 159 legislators voted for the bill.

The new law comes at a delicate time for China and for the world at large - terror attacks in Paris, the bombing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt, and the brutal killings of hostages committed by the notorious Islamic State (IS) extremist group are alerting the world about an ever-growing threat of terrorism.

Before Sunday's new bill, China did not have a specialized counter-terrorism law, though related provisions feature in various NPC Standing Committee decisions, as well as the Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure Law and Emergency Response Law.