China says at least 12 killed in Xinjiang riot

Xinhua said police were chasing others involved in the attacks but did not say how many suspects there were.

A Communist Party official in Yecheng county, who declined to give his name, later said that all the rioters had been captured by police, but he refused to answer further questions. Calls to police offices in Yecheng went unanswered.

Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the German-based World Uyghur Congress, said that local Uighurs told him seven armed Chinese security personnel were killed and three people were shot to death. He said two additional people were killed but did not provide any detail of those deaths. He said 10 people were injured, including two seriously hurt, and police have detained 84 people. Police have sealed off the area, he said.

Dilxat said the violence in Yecheng _ which Uighurs call Kargilik _ erupted because local residents ”could no longer bear China’s systematic repression,” and have been denied outlets for peaceful protest.

The bloodshed late Tuesday in the Xinjiang region’s Yecheng county was triggered by what state media called either ”rioters” or ”terrorists” with knives who killed 10 people. Police fatally shot two of the assailants, the reports said.

A spokesman for an overseas Uighur group described the violence as a clash between local Uighurs and armed Chinese security personnel.

Censors blocked postings about the attack on Twitter-like microblogs. Searches on Sina Corporation’s popular Weibo service returned the message: ”In accordance with relevant laws, regulations and policies, ‘Xinjiang Yecheng’ search results were not shown.”