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| China arrests 19 over Xinjiang deadly clashes | China arrests 19 over Xinjiang deadly clashes |
| (12 days later) | |
| Police have arrested 19 suspects in connection with deadly clashes that began after authorities saw "terrorists" making explosives in China's western region of Xinjiang, propaganda officials and state media have reported. | Police have arrested 19 suspects in connection with deadly clashes that began after authorities saw "terrorists" making explosives in China's western region of Xinjiang, propaganda officials and state media have reported. |
| A total of 21 people died in last Tuesday's violence in a town near Kashgar city. It was the highest death toll for a single incident in months in Xinjiang, which sees recurrent violence pitting members of the Muslim Uighur group against the authorities and majority ethnic Han Chinese migrants. Beijing says China faces an organised terrorist threat from radical Muslim groups in the region. | A total of 21 people died in last Tuesday's violence in a town near Kashgar city. It was the highest death toll for a single incident in months in Xinjiang, which sees recurrent violence pitting members of the Muslim Uighur group against the authorities and majority ethnic Han Chinese migrants. Beijing says China faces an organised terrorist threat from radical Muslim groups in the region. |
| Last week's violence killed 15 police officers and community workers, as well as six assailants, according to Xinjiang's propaganda office. Authorities described the gang as terrorists. | Last week's violence killed 15 police officers and community workers, as well as six assailants, according to Xinjiang's propaganda office. Authorities described the gang as terrorists. |
| Eight suspects were taken into custody after the clashes, with a further 11 captured on Monday. | Eight suspects were taken into custody after the clashes, with a further 11 captured on Monday. |
| A statement posted on a website run by the Xinjiang regional government's propaganda office on Monday said the 19 suspects belonged to a terrorist group founded in September, whose members regularly watched video clips advocating religious extremism and terrorism, and attended illegal preaching ceremonies. | A statement posted on a website run by the Xinjiang regional government's propaganda office on Monday said the 19 suspects belonged to a terrorist group founded in September, whose members regularly watched video clips advocating religious extremism and terrorism, and attended illegal preaching ceremonies. |
| Citing police, the statement said the group had planned to carry out a major attack in densely populated areas of Kashgar in the summer, and was seen making explosives on 23 April by local police and community workers, which led to the clashes. | Citing police, the statement said the group had planned to carry out a major attack in densely populated areas of Kashgar in the summer, and was seen making explosives on 23 April by local police and community workers, which led to the clashes. |
| Meng Hongwei, the deputy public security minister, was quoted by the official Xinhua news agency as saying that authorities had discovered a stash of homemade explosives, "lethal weapons", and flags promoting the independence of Xinjiang, referred to by Uighur activists as East Turkistan. | Meng Hongwei, the deputy public security minister, was quoted by the official Xinhua news agency as saying that authorities had discovered a stash of homemade explosives, "lethal weapons", and flags promoting the independence of Xinjiang, referred to by Uighur activists as East Turkistan. |
| Xinhua said Meng vowed an "iron-handed crackdown against terrorism", saying police would use "every possible means to find and punish terrorists with no mercy". | Xinhua said Meng vowed an "iron-handed crackdown against terrorism", saying police would use "every possible means to find and punish terrorists with no mercy". |
| Xinhua also quoted the governor of Xinjiang, Nur Bekri, as saying that the incident was "not about ethnic or religious issues, but a terrorist act to split the motherland and undermine national unity". | Xinhua also quoted the governor of Xinjiang, Nur Bekri, as saying that the incident was "not about ethnic or religious issues, but a terrorist act to split the motherland and undermine national unity". |
| "The terrorists carried out the attacks on victims, without sparing people of their own ethnic group," Bekri was quoted as saying at a ceremony to award posthumous honours to the dead officers and government workers. | "The terrorists carried out the attacks on victims, without sparing people of their own ethnic group," Bekri was quoted as saying at a ceremony to award posthumous honours to the dead officers and government workers. |
| A leading Uighur activist has questioned the official account of the incident. Local sources said police sparked it by shooting a Uighur youth during an illegal search of homes, according to Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the German-based World Uyghur Congress. | A leading Uighur activist has questioned the official account of the incident. Local sources said police sparked it by shooting a Uighur youth during an illegal search of homes, according to Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the German-based World Uyghur Congress. |
| Xinjiang, a sprawling region that borders central Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, is home to millions of Uighurs, many of whom complain of tight restrictions on religious and cultural life by Beijing and say they have been marginalised by policies favouring Han migrants. | Xinjiang, a sprawling region that borders central Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, is home to millions of Uighurs, many of whom complain of tight restrictions on religious and cultural life by Beijing and say they have been marginalised by policies favouring Han migrants. |
| Beijing says it treats minorities fairly and spends billions of dollars on improving living standards in minority areas. | Beijing says it treats minorities fairly and spends billions of dollars on improving living standards in minority areas. |
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