Police to probe 10 relatives of Urumqi suicide bombers

• Staff Reporter
 
• 2014-05-05
 
• 
  

Armed police and fire fighters rush to the scene following the explosions at Urumqi south railway station, April 30. (Photo/CNS)

Chinese authorities will investigate at least 10 family members of the two men who carried out a knife attack and suicide bombing in northwest China's restive Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, reports the Global Times, a tabloid under the auspices of the Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily.

The incident took place last Wednesday evening when the duo stabbed people with knives and set off explosives at the exit of the Urumqi south railway station in the region's capital. Both suspects were killed by the blasts along with a bystander, while 79 others were wounded.

The attack is yet another case of ethnic violence linked to the Uyghur minority, who have been blamed for a slate of terrorist activities in and out of the region in recent years. Uyghur activists point the finger at the Chinese government for economic and social policies that suppress the group's religious and cultural freedoms.

Xinjiang police said they are currently looking into the older brother, younger brother, wife, 69-year-old father and 77-year-old father-in-law of one of the attackers, who has already been identified. Details of the other bomber have not yet been made public, though both are said to be religious extremists.

The local public security bureau also said it is attempting to track down other suspects believed to have been involved.

A Xinjiang government official told the Global Times that locals are determined not to let the act of terror affect their jobs and their lives.

The official said most of the physical injuries are not major but that they are more concerned with psychological harm given how many incidents of ethnic violence there have been, in particular the July 2009 Urumqi riots which left at least 197 people dead. Consequently, the local government has arranged one-on-one counseling for all of the victims, he added.

Last Wednesday's incident is the third high-profile terrorist attack linked to Uyghurs in the past seven months. Last October, five people were killed when a jeep crashed into a crowd in Beijing's iconic Tiananmen Square, while another 29 were killed during a mass stabbing in March at a train station in the Yunnan provincial capital of Kunming.

Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao said that the recent attacks may have expedited China's long-awaited new terrorism bill, which is currently being examined by academics and experts for comment. While the contents of the sensitive bill remain shrouded in secrecy, some analysts believe that, given the pressing need, the act will be passed by the end of the year.