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Xinjiang
region
·
On August 4,
2008 Chinese
police said
a grenade
assault that
killed 16
policemen in
western
Xinjiang
region was a
''suspected
terrorist''
attack, four
days ahead
of the
Beijing
Olympic
Games
·
In China
militants
from Uighur
minority are
regarded as
a major
threat to
security at
the 2008
Olympic.
Mission
IAS’2009
·
The
militants
are blamed
for a bloody
attack on a
border post
in western
China in the
run-up to
the Games.
Human rights
groups have
long accused
China of
persecuting
the Uighurs.
·
The
Uighurs are
Muslims
based in
north-western
China's
Xinjiang
region.
Their
language is
related to
Turkish and
they regard
themselves
as
culturally
and
ethnically
close to
other
Central
Asian
nations.
·
The region's
economy has
for
centuries
revolved
around
agriculture
and trade,
with towns
such as
Kashgar
thriving as
hubs along
the Silk
Road.
·
In the early
part of the
20th
Century, the
Uighurs
briefly
declared
independence.
The region
was brought
under the
complete
control of
communist
China in
1949.
·
Officially,
Xinjiang is
now
described by
China as an
autonomous
region, like
Tibet to its
south.
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