Updated on
Summary
Violence in the capital of China's volatile Xinjiang region killed 140 people and injured 828, an official said, following rioting by members of a Muslim ethnic group and a police crackdown on their demonstrations. The official toll makes the unrest the deadliest single incident of unrest in Xinjiang in recent decades. The violence in Urumqi apparently happened after a peaceful protest Sunday of about 1,000 to 3,000 people spun out of control, with rioters overturning barricades, attacking vehicles and houses, and clashing with police. Uigher exile groups said the violence started only after police began violently cracking down on the peaceful protest. Wu Nong, director of the news office of the Xinjiang provincial government, said more than 260 vehicles were attacked or set on fire and 203 houses were damaged. He said 140 people were killed and 828 injured in the violence. The official Xinhua News Agency also said 140 people died and that the death toll was still climbing.
