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A worker checks on security cameras in Tiananmen Square. Photo: AFP

Stay vigilant ahead of war victory parade, China's police told security departments

China's deputy police chief has told security departments across the country to remain vigilant as the nation prepares to host the 70th anniversary parade marking the end of the second world war.

Deputy minister of public security Fu Zhenghua told a meeting of police last week that officers should strive to "always keep a clear mind and nip problems in the bud", the , a newspaper affiliated with the Ministry of Public Security, reported on Sunday.

Several foreign dignitaries are expected to attend the parade on September 3 that will see war veterans and military hardware pass through Tiananmen Square in Beijing while air force planes fly in formation overhead.

Two years ago, a car crashed into the square, killing five people and injuring 40 others in what authorities labelled a terrorist attack. It came just ahead of the third plenary session of the 18th Communist Party congress. At least three people were tried for orchestrating the violence and executed last year in Xinjiang , home to the mostly Muslim Uygur ethnic minority.

It was followed by a knife attack at a Kunming rail station in Yunnan province in March last year that left 29 people dead, another outburst of violence just days before a key political gathering.

Beijing has blamed the violence on separatists and extremists in the western region, and said some wanted to import jihad from Islamic State.

Li Wei, head of the anti-terrorism research centre at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said the parade posed a big challenge.

"A major challenge is anti-terrorism as the influence of Islamic terrorists is rising in China," Li said. "For instance, Chinese nationals were recently found in Turkey and Southeast Asia to have joined Islamic State."

Exiled Uygur leaders and rights groups say the minority is subjected to religious and cultural persecution, which is driving them to seek refuge offshore.

Last month, authorities in Wenzhou in Zhejiang and Shenyang in Liaoning province, said they had captured several terrorists.

Deng Weiping, the public security ministry's discipline inspection commission secretary, was quoted as saying at the meeting that most of the police's inspection task forces in Beijing and neighbouring regions would focus on the September 3 event. He ordered officers to "think backwards and put ourselves in others' place" when checking for oversights.

Yue Gang, a retired colonel and anti-terrorism expert, warned about a possible security threat from unmanned aerial vehicles. "Since this is a highly developed industry now, they should keep a close eye on possible bomb threats using such vehicles," he said.

State media reported Beijing would close its two airports from 9.30am to 12.30pm on the day of the parade.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Stay vigilant ahead of parade in Beijing, police told
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