The incident may have been prompted by restrictions during the Muslim holy month.<\/p>\n
At least 18 people are dead following a knife and bomb attack by a group of ethnic Uyghurs on a police traffic checkpoint in northwestern China\u2019s troubled Xinjiang region, sources said Tuesday, amid harsh restrictions on observance of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.<\/p>\n
One source said the incident, which occurred Monday in the Tahtakoruk district of southwestern Xinjiang\u2019s Kashgar (in Chinese, Kashi) city, left as many as 28 people dead, several of whom were bystanders.<\/p>\n
The attack began when a car sped through a traffic checkpoint without stopping, Turghun Memet, an officer with the nearby Heyhag district police station told RFA\u2019s Uyghur Service.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen one of the policemen at the checkpoint ran out of the booth, the car backed up, hitting him and breaking his leg,\u201d Memet said.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo other suspects then rushed out of the car, using knives to attack and kill two police officers who had come to rescue their comrade,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The remaining traffic police, who do not carry guns, called for backup from Memet\u2019s department and the People\u2019s Armed Police (PAP).<\/p>\n
\u201cBy the time armed police reached the scene, three more suspects had arrived by sidecar motorcycle and attacked the checkpoint and police cars with explosives, killing one regular police officer, another traffic policeman and one auxiliary officer,\u201d Memet said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey also injured four other officers and damaged a police vehicle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt that point, our [armed officers] arrived and killed 15 suspects we designated as terrorists.\u201d<\/p>\n
Memet said the car used by the attackers had displayed a license plate from Kizilsu Kirghiz Autonomous Prefecture\u2019s Atush (in Chinese, Atushi) city, but he was told they were residents of Kashgar prefecture\u2019s Yengisheher (Shule) and Peyziwat (Jiashi) counties.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe security is tight in [downtown Kashgar], so they chose to attack an area on the outskirts of the city,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were in possession of simple weapons, so they targeted [an unarmed] traffic police checkpoint.\u201d<\/p>\n
Information \u2018tightly controlled\u2019<\/p>\n
A police officer from Kashgar\u2019s Ostengboyi station, near the site of the attack, confirmed the incident to RFA, but said it was unclear how many people had died.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe number of the dead varies even among the police\u2014especially when it comes to the number of female suspects,\u201d the officer said on condition of anonymity, adding that he had heard either three or eight women were involved in the attack.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome are saying that all of the suspects were killed, while others say some were injured and taken to the hospital for treatment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cInformation about this kind of incident is always tightly controlled\u2014not even the police are given the details. But people are saying that the dead numbered around 20.\u201d<\/p>\n
The officer noted that the attack occurred during the sensitive month of Ramadan and had \u201ca massive effect\u201d on the inhabitants of the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven the police are panicked and the situation is still very tense right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
An officer from the Qoghan police station, which has jurisdiction over the site of the incident, also said the attackers were from Yengisheher and Peyziwat counties, but decided to target Kashgar because the city is more populated.<\/p>\n
\u201cI assume that they intended to do more damage in a bigger crowd in Kashgar city,\u201d he said, adding that an investigation into the attack was ongoing.<\/p>\n
\u2018Running for their lives\u2019<\/p>\n
A food vendor who works near where the attack occurred said the sound of explosions and prolonged gunfire prompted him to open his shop door a crack so he could see what was happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw people running for their lives in all directions when the police fired, including a lot of women who were crying and screaming,\u201d he said, adding that if the women had been among the attackers \u201cthey would not have run and cried.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe weren\u2019t given any information about the suspects\u2019 identities. The government usually refers to them as \u2018terrorists\u2019 in this kind of situation and they may do so this time as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
A retired government worker, who also declined to give his name, said he had heard from a police officer that \u201c28 people were killed in the incident, including six attackers and three police, while the others were all bystanders.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seems the police who arrived at the spot were either panicked or encouraged by the \u2018strike hard\u2019 policy, because they opened fire indiscriminately and many people who were not linked to the attackers got killed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Authorities have launched a \u201cstrike hard\u201d campaign in Xinjiang in the name of fighting separatism, religious extremism, and terrorism, following a string of violent incidents that have left hundreds dead in recent years.<\/p>\n
The government worker said he believed the incident was prompted by the restrictions put in place by authorities during the month of Ramadan, which he called \u201cvery extreme.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this is the first reaction to this year\u2019s Ramadan restrictions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf such restrictions were implemented in other parts of the [Muslim] world, they would have led to bloody incidents on a mass scale, but we Uyghurs are a defenseless and helpless people and this is the reaction.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ramadan restrictions<\/p>\n
The attack comes a week after millions of Uyghurs began observance of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan under increasing official pressure not to fast.<\/p>\n
Uyghur officials and other state employees like teachers have been banned from fasting, and it is against the law for children under 18 to take part in religious activities.<\/p>\n
Restaurants in the region are typically required to stay open all day, even if the owners are Muslim, and Uyghur children and young people are often required to attend free lunches in the region’s schools and universities to avoid the dawn-to-dusk fast traditionally observed during Ramadan.<\/p>\n
Turkic-speaking minority Uyghurs have complained about pervasive ethnic discrimination, religious repression, and cultural suppression by Chinese authorities.<\/p>\n
Last October, authorities tightened rules forbidding anyone under the age of 18 from following a religion, targeting families whose children studied the Quran or fasted during Ramadan with hefty fines.<\/p>\n
Authorities in the Hotan, Kashgar, and Aksu prefectures of Xinjiang have forced Uyghur parents to sign pledges promising not to allow their children to participate in religious activities, the Germany-based World Uyghur Congress exile group has said.<\/p>\n
Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFA\u2019s Uyghur Service. Translated by Mamatjan Juma. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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