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Police impose calm on China city 'Needles' riots continue in China
(about 6 hours later)
Armed police are on the streets of Urumqi, in China's far western province of Xinjiang, in an attempt to prevent a third day of protests in the city. There have been further protests in the far western Chinese city of Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang province.
Police were deployed overnight after large numbers of Han Chinese protested in central areas on Thursday. A large crowd of Han Chinese confronted hundreds of riot police for a third day amid growing anger in the city over attacks with hypodermic needles.
Protesters have also been demanding quicker trials for people charged over deadly ethnic riots in July.
Almost 200 people, most of them Han Chinese, were killed in violence with ethnic Uighurs in Urumqi.
Chinese authorities blame Uighur separatists for July's violence, saying it was orchestrated by Uighur separatists in exile. Xinjiang's population is split between mainly-Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese - the country's majority ethnic group.
Stand-off
The BBC's Michael Bristow, in Urumqi, describes the situation as tense.
Police were guarding the central People's Square - scene of a large demonstration on Thursday - and waiting at roadblocks and in lorries parked on side streets.
Police moved to contain the protesters in Urumqi on Thursday
Several hundred police in riot gear broke away to confront a crowd of protesters at a central intersection.
There were scuffles as police arrested several protesters, but the stand-off continued.
Large numbers of police were deployed overnight in the city after crowds of Han Chinese protested in central areas on Thursday.
A witness told the BBC that as many as 2,000 ethnic Han Chinese had been demonstrating in the capital Urumqi over the previous two days.A witness told the BBC that as many as 2,000 ethnic Han Chinese had been demonstrating in the capital Urumqi over the previous two days.
Almost 200 people were killed in violence with ethnic Uighurs in July.
A trigger for the protests appears to have been a spate of unexplained stabbings using hypodermic syringes.
Local media said nearly 500 people, almost all Han, had sought treatment for stabbing in the past few weeks.
State-run news agency Xinhua said that 15 people had been arrested over the stabbings, and that four of them had already been prosecuted.
Safety fearsSafety fears
The streets of Urumqi were quiet on Friday, reports said, as large groups of police imposed order on the city. A series of unexplained stabbings using hypodermic syringes appears to be a trigger for the protests.
The BBC's Michael Bristow, in Urumqi, says police were waiting in trucks down side streets and standing guard at roadblocks on Friday. Chinese media said that nearly 500 people, almost all Han, have sought treatment for stabbings in the past few weeks. Reports said 89 people had "clear syringe marks" but that no-one had been infected or poisoned.
They stood guard in the central square and in the surrounding streets, our correspondent says. A businessman in Urumqi told the BBC on Thursday that many members of the Han community had joined the demonstrations.
A businessman in Urumqi told the BBC on Thursday that many members of the Han community had been demonstrating. Another Han resident said he was concerned for his safety.
"Nearly everyone in Urumqi is on strike or protesting. Right now in front of me there are at least 2,000 people," he said from the centre of Urumqi. "The local government is not doing enough to protect Han people there... I am really [worried about] my family and relatives there. [The] Chinese government should do more to prevent this," he told the BBC.
Police moved to contain the protesters in central Urumqi There is also anger over what many perceive as official slowness in punishing suspects charged for July's riots.
Local state media said the protest was over a recent spate of stabbings by people armed with hypodermic syringes. Protesters have accused the provincial government of being "useless", and some even called for the dismissal of regional Communist Party boss Wang Lequan, who is thought to be an ally of President Hu Jintao.
A public service announcement on local Xinjiang TV said that 476 people had sought treatment for stabbing - 433 of whom were Han Chinese, suggesting the attacks were ethnically motivated.
One Han resident told the BBC he was concerned for his safety.
"The local government is not doing enough to protect Han people there... I am really [worried about] my family and relatives there. I urge [the] Chinese government should do more to prevent this," he told the BBC.
Protesters have accused the provincial government of being "useless", and some even asked for the dismissal of regional Communist Party boss Wang Lequan, who is thought to be an ally of President Hu Jintao.
Large numbers of police blocked the protesters from reaching People's Square in the city centre.
Ethnic tensionEthnic tension
Thursday's demonstration underscored the lingering tensions that still remain in Urumqi after the July violence, despite the large police presence that remains in the city.
The protests also come at a bad time for the central government in Beijing, as it prepares to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Communist rule on 1 October.
The tension between Xinjiang's Uighur and Han communities has been simmering for many years, but the ethnic unrest in July was the worst in China for decades.The tension between Xinjiang's Uighur and Han communities has been simmering for many years, but the ethnic unrest in July was the worst in China for decades.
The violence began when an initially peaceful protest by Uighur youths, apparently prompted by an earlier riot in a factory in southern China, spiralled out of control - with shops and vehicles burned and passers-by attacked. The violence began on 5 July when an initially peaceful protest by Uighur youths, apparently prompted by an earlier riot in a factory in southern China, spiralled out of control - with shops and vehicles burned and passers-by attacked.
At least 197 people died and about 1,600 were injured, according to official figures.
The government says most of the dead were Han, but the exile activist group the World Uighur Congress claims many Uighurs were also killed.
Members of the city's Han community last held mass protests shortly after July's violence.
About 80 people have been charged over the violence but no date has been set for their trial.About 80 people have been charged over the violence but no date has been set for their trial.
Some Uighurs complain that Han migration into the province has diluted their culture and marginalised them economically.
Han currently account for roughly 40% of Xinjiang's population, while about 45% are Uighurs.
President Hu Jintao visited the region in late August and called for ethnic unity to be strengthened.
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