At least 27 people were killed in China’s Muslim-majority province of Xinjiang on 26 June, in deadly riots seen as a result of Chinese oppression of the Muslim minority in the region. “The cause of today’s incident is from the continuous oppression and incitement from the Chinese government,” Dilxat Rexit, a Sweden-based spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress, was reported as saying.
“Seventeen people had been killed… before police opened fire and shot dead 10 rioters,” Xinhua news agency said, citing local officials. Three other people were taken to hospital with injuries. The unrest is the deadliest since 2009 when nearly 200 people were killed in deadly riots in the province. Chinese authorities have convicted about 200 people, mostly Uighurs, over the riots and sentenced 26 of them to death. Uighur Muslims are a Turkish-speaking minority of eight million in the north-western Xinjiang region. Uighur activists have called for the intervention of the international community to change policies on the Muslim community.