April 2014 Ürümqi attack | |
---|---|
Location | Ürümqi, Xinjiang, China |
Date | 30 April 2014 7:10 pm ( China Standard Time) |
Target | Ürümqi Railway Station |
Attack type | Suicide bombing; knife attack |
Deaths | 3 (including both perpetrators) |
Injured | 79 |
Perpetrators | Turkestan Islamic Party |
Motive | Islamic extremism |
On 30 April 2014, a bomb-and-knife attack occurred in the Chinese city of Ürümqi, Xinjiang. The terrorist attack killed 3 people, and injured 79 others. The attack coincided with the conclusion of a visit by Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party to the region. [1]
At approximately 7:10 pm local time, a pair of assailants attacked passengers with knives and detonated explosives at the city's railway station. [2] [3] Police closed off all entrances to the station in the immediate aftermath of the attack, but it was reopened at 9 pm with increased security. The number of perpetrators involved in the attack is unknown, [4] but 2 individuals are suspected. [5] The Turkestan Islamic Party claimed responsibility. [6]
The attack occurred on the final day of Xi Jinping's 4-day tour of the region. [4] A day prior, he labelled Xinjiang the "front line against terrorism" during a visit to the nearby city of Kashgar, and vowed to take a hardline against terrorism and violence attributed to Muslim Uyghur separatists, which killed at least 100 people over the past year. [7] It is not known if Xi was still in the province when the attack took place. [4] On the morning of the attack, he visited a mosque – located 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) away from the railway station – and urged religious leaders to foster harmony among the people in Xinjiang by giving followers a better understanding of religious teachings. [2]
At 7:10 pm local time on 30 April 2014, [1] a group of individuals used knives to attack passengers and detonated bombs at the exit of Ürümqi South Station. [2] Originally, it was thought that the explosives came from luggage situated between the station and the bus stop outside, [8] but the People's Daily stated that the attackers had "set off bombs tied on their bodies and died." [9] The scope of the blast was also disputed. While one worker at a nearby hostel had reportedly mistaken the explosion for an earthquake, [10] [11] another eyewitness noted how the bomb appeared to be "home made, as the blast was not massive." [2] Initially, the attack was said to have injured fifty people, but state news media revised the figures the next morning to three killed and seventy-nine injured. [4]
It was reported that the attack was carried out by two religiously motivated suicide bombers. [12] One of them was identified as Sedierding Shawuti, a 39-year-old Uyghur from Xayar County, Aksu in Southern Xinjiang. [9] [13] According to an anti-terrorist intelligence service, a group named Turkestan Islamic Party has claimed responsibility for the attack. [6]
After the attack, "security forces moved quickly" to the station, and later paramilitary and riot [5] police were stationed on its various entrances. [1] [2] [14] Casualties were taken to the hospital in ambulances, but taxis were also commandeered to compensate for a lack of ambulance availability and to ensure the swift treatment of injuries. [5] According to Xinhua News Agency, the area around the station was evacuated by security forces. [15] The bombing meant that the rail services ceased for about two hours, and ensuing this attack nearby shops repaired minor damage and tightened security. [5]
There was an overnight cordon around the train station, [5] which was lifted at 9:00 pm, [16] amid heavier police security. [4]
Many internet posts regarding the attack were rapidly censored by the Chinese government. Sina Weibo, the country's largest microblogging site, took down comments and photos pertaining to the explosion, [1] which had come through within an hour on their "Breaking News" account. It did not make any further updates for two hours. [17]
Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping responded to the incident by promising "decisive actions [against] terrorist attacks" [14] and stated that a "strike-first" strategy would be implemented. [10] He also called on government officials in the region to do everything they could to ensure that the injured were assisted, the crime investigated and the perpetrators punished severely. [2]
Search engine Baidu prevented certain results from appearing when searching for terms related to the attack – citing "relevant legal rules and policies" [18] – while Chinese news media simply duplicated the report by Xinhua News Agency, which is required of them when reporting on sensitive topics. [18]
It identified one of them as Sedierding Shawuti, a 39-year-old man from Xayar county in Xinjiang's Aksu region. The man is a member of the Muslim Uighur minority, judging by his name.