Chinese officials blame “jihad” for recent attacks

Adds to Muslim 'burden of suspicion', Uighurs say

Kashgar, CHINA (Reuters)

A taxi driver and vegetable seller accused of killing 16 police in China's restive Western region just days before the Beijing Olympics were religious extremists bent on "jihad", a top official said on Tuesday.

Evidence from the bloody dawn attack also linked the two men to violent separatist groups who wanted to tarnish the Games, said Shi Dagang, Communist Party chief of the silk road city of Kashgar.

"Religion is more important to them than their own life or peace for their mothers, and so they set out to perform jihad," Shi told a news conference the day after the killings.

The men are accused of ramming a truck into 70 frontier police out on a dawn training run, then continuing the carnage with homemade explosives, a homemade gun and a collection of knives. Sixteen policemen were injured, four seriously.

The suspects, both members of the largely Muslim Uighur ethnic minority, were arrested on the spot. One is in hospital after blowing an arm off while handling explosives, which Shi said were similar to those seized by police when they raided a separatist training camp in 2007.

Separatist movement

Officials have said Uighur militants seeking to turn the region into an independent "East Turkestan" homeland are among the biggest threats. This year separatist leaders had ordered a string of attacks and sent bomb-making and poisoning manuals to cells in China, Shi said.

In April, public security officials said authorities had foiled plots to kidnap athletes. China earlier said it had foiled a plan by Uighur separatists to bring down a Beijing-bound plane.

"Starting from last year, East Turkestan organizations have been persistently trying to launch activities targeting the Olympic Games," Shi said. "They want to use the simplest methods to turn 2008 into a year of mourning."

But he vowed that the government and party had the ability to fight back and defend China's "Western gate". Xinjiang police had already arrested 18 people infiltrated from abroad who were involved in a string of planned attacks and unrest earlier this year, he added.

Security measures in the city, 3,000 miles (5,000 km) west of Beijing, have been stepped up although the atmosphere was calm and both residents and tourists said they felt safe.

Muslim burden

Kashgar Uighurs who were willing to talk to journalists -- most are too wary of discussing sensitive topics with outsiders -- said they thought separatists were behind the attack, but feared it would only add to a burden of suspicion they already face.

"We are scared that after this, things may be even harder for Uighurs," said a shopper in Kashgar's main market who gave only his first name, Ibrahim. "There's already a lot of tension here."

Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the exiled World Uyghur Congress, said the government had rounded up many Uighurs in Kashgar following the attack, some of whom had been beaten.

"We oppose any violence, whether by Uighurs or Chinese," he said by telephone. "We urge international society to put pressure on China to freely let journalists report from Kashgar and deal with the issue legally and not go after innocent Uighurs."

Alim Seytoff, general secretary of the Uyghur American Association, a Washington D.C.-based group, said Monday's attack pointed more to discontent than militancy.

Many Uighurs resent Chinese controls on religion and the expanding ethnic Han Chinese presence in Xinjiang, a region rich in energy and mineral resources.

"We don't believe there are militant groups behind this," he said, adding that he had few details on the attack. "But we do know the crackdown in Xinjiang, especially ahead of the Olympics, has increased discontent among Uighurs."