Fifty killed in a knife attack at a Chinese colliery

Nine attackers are being pursued after they launched a coordinated knife attack on a northwestern Chinese coal mine that left 50 workers dead, reports Radio Free Asia.

The incident occurred on September 18 in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region at the Terk township. The attackers are alleged to be Uyghur separatists.

After overtaking the security guards, the attackers killed the workers at the Sogan colliery in Aksu while they were asleep. Another 50 workers, who were mostly Han Chinese, were injured. The suspects are believed to be hiding in a nearby mountain ravine where a manhunt operation is underway.

The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region suffers from discord due to ethnic fault lines. Uyghurs identify more closely with Central Asian nations. The area was independent up to 1949 when it became part of China. China has been asserting is control over the area with more westward migration and a heavier military presence.

Information about the attack is being guarded by officials:

“The damage of the attack was very severe—that is why we are controlling [the flow of] information about the incident so strictly, lest we frighten Han migrants in Aksu,” said the cadre, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Image from zhaoliang70 / Shutterstock.com

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