Chinese security forces in the far western region of Xinjiang killed 28 “terrorists” from a group that carried out a deadly attack at a coal mine in September. The news carried on Friday by the government-run Xinjiang Daily was the first official mention of the September 18 attack at the Sogan colliery in Aksu, in which it said 16 people – including five police officers -were killed and another 18 wounded.
US-funded Radio Free Asia, which first reported the incident about two months ago, said at least 50 people had died. Attackers fled into the mountains and authorities launched a manhunt with more than 10,000 people forming an “inescapable dragnet”, the Xinjiang Daily said.
“After 56 days of continuous fighting, Xinjiang destroyed a violent terrorist gang directly under the command of a foreign extremist group. Aside from one person who surrendered, 28 thugs were completely annihilated,” the newspaper reported.
China’s government says it faces a serious threat from rebels and separatists in energy-rich Xinjiang, on the border of Central Asia, where hundreds have died in violence in recent years. Xinjian is home to the mostly Muslim Uighur ethnic minority people. Rights groups say China has never presented convincing evidence of the existence of a cohesive armed group fighting the government.
Xinjiang Tianshan comprises four components—Tomur,
Kalajun-Kuerdening, Bayinbukuke and Bogda— that total 606,833 hectares.
They are part of the Tianshan mountain sysstem of Central Asia, one of the largest mountain ranges in the world.
Xinjiang Tianshan presents unique physical geographic features aand scenically beautiful areas
including spectacular snow and snowy mountainss glacier-capped
peaks, undisturbedd forests and meadows, clear rivers and lakes and red bed
canyons. These landscapes contrast with the vast adjacent desert landscapes, creating a striking visxual ccontrast between hot and
cold environments, dry and wet, desolate and luxuriant.
The landforms and ecosystems of thhe site haave been preserved since
the Pliocene epoch and present an outstanding example of
ongoing biological and ecological evolutionary processes.
The site also extends intfo the Taklimakan Desert,
one oof the world’s largest and highest deserts, known for its large dune forms aand great dust storms.
Xinjiang Tianshan is moreover an important hzbitat for endemic and
relic flora species, some rare and endangered.