bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Keira Lu Huang


Three people have been sentenced to death for organising the attack in Tiananmen Square last October that left five people dead.
A court in Urumqi , Xinjiang convicted the three of organising and leading a terrorist group and endangering public security, Xinhua reported. They were identified as Husanjan Wuxur, Yusup Umarniyaz and Yusup Ahmat.
Five other defendants were sentenced to prison terms ranging from five years to life for their part in organising the attack.

Meanwhile, 13 people were executed in three cities in Xinjiang after being earlier convicted for "terrorist attacks and violent crimes", state media reported. The incidents dated back to February 2012. The sentences were carried out following a review by the supreme court.
Watch: Three sentenced to death as court reveals unseen footage of Tiananmen Square attack

On October 28, a car ploughed into tourists near the entrance to the Forbidden City in Beijing and burst into flames. A Chinese visitor and a tourist from the Philippines were killed. The attackers - the driver of the car, his wife and his mother-in-law - also died. The authorities blamed Muslim separatist militants from Xinjiang.

The suspects formed a terrorist group in 2011 and plotted violent acts, state television reported. From December 2012 to the following September they acquired firearms and explosives and plotted to go to the capital to set off a deadly explosion.
Members of the group travelled to Beijing in October and raised money from supporters to buy the car that would be driven to Tiananmen Square.

About 400 people attended the public trial of the suspects, and footage showed Uygur women in tears as they watched the proceedings.
Li Wei, a Beijing-based anti-terrorism expert, said the death sentences would do little to deter militants from carrying out future attacks. "Terrorists' minds have long been implanted with extreme thoughts. They understand what consequences they face," Li said.
Human rights organisations say curbs on the ethnic group's language, religion and culture have inflamed tensions.

The Tiananmen attack was the first of several that the authorities have blamed on Uygur separatists in recent months.
These include an attack on an open-air market in Urumqi in which assailants killed 29 people.
On Sunday, four people were injured when attackers armed with knives assaulted a chess hall in Hotan , state television reported. Two attackers were killed and another injured after they were subdued by the security forces and people at the scene.
President Xi Jinping presided over a two-day meeting of the Central Work Conference last month, where counterterrorism was reaffirmed as a priority.
"[We must] push forward the domestic and international front lines in fighting terrorism and strengthen anti-terror cooperation with other countries," Xi told senior officials at the meeting, according to state media.
WATCH: Tiananmen Square SUV attack



Three sentenced to death as court reveals unseen footage of Tiananmen Square attack

The three sentenced to death for their role in the attack in Beijing last October – from left, Husanjan Wuxur, Yusup Umarniyaz and Yusup Ahmat. Photos: Screengrabs from CCTV

The three men sentenced to death watch as the court displays evidence of their "terrorist activities", in a CCTV report. Photos: Screengrabs from CCTV

Top (L-R): Gulnar Tuhtiniyaz, Bujanat Abdukadir, Abla Niyaz and Tursunjan Abliz. Bottom (L-R): Yusup Ahmat, Tohti Mehmat, Husanjan Wuxur and Yusup Umarniyaz. Photos: Screengrabs from CCTV

The SUV engulfed in flames after ramming into a crowd at Tiananmen Square, killing five and injuring 40 others. Photo: AFP

The SUV engulfed in flames after ramming into a crowd at Tiananmen Square, killing five and injuring 40 others. Photo: SCMP Pictures

A Weibo photo shows the aftermath after the car accident in Tiananmen. Islamic militants were blamed for planning and carrying out the attack. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Clockwise from top left: The car rams through the northern edge of the square, driving into a crowd, then hits bystanders as it crashes into a barrier. Then the car bursts into flames. Photos: Screengrabs from CCTV

Three knifemen attack Xinjiang chess hall, two are killed

Police officers in Beijing demonstrate their skills at handling terror attacks in the wake of violence in Xinjiang. Photo: AFP

News

China

Five others given terms ranging from five years to life for organising terror group and endangering security


Three people have been sentenced to death for organising the attack in Tiananmen Square last October that left five people dead.
