China’s capital boosted armed police patrols yesterday following a spate of attacks the government blames on terrorists seeking independence for the northwestern region of Xinjiang.
Beijing’s police force said on its microblog that 150 additional vehicles and nearly 2,000 police and auxiliaries were being assigned to guard key intersections around the city of more than 20 million people.
The additional personnel were drawn from the paramilitary People’s Armed Police, members of whom could be seen standing in groups of three around Tiananmen Square in the heart of the city.
Wearing helmets and carrying automatic rifles, they kept a close eye on crowds circulating some of the country’s most iconic sites such as Tiananmen Gate and the Great Hall of the People, where foreign dignitaries are welcomed.
The additional security was taken to increase the public’s sense of security, intimidate would-be assailants and shorten response times to violent incidents, the police statement said.
The statement said the new security teams would be a permanent presence in the capital, adding to a slew of increased security measures that include checkpoints and security screening for subway riders and anyone seeking to enter public spaces such as Tiananmen Square.
China has increased security countrywide in the wake of two recent attacks at train stations that killed 30 people and at least two attackers.
The assaults were blamed on extremists from among Xinjiang’s native Turkic Muslim Uighur ethnic group.
The violence has also included an unprecedented attack last year on Tiananmen Gate in the heart of Beijing that killed three Uighur assailants and two tourists.
Although Uighur separatists have been waging a low-level insurgency for decades, recent attacks have been bolder and bloodier, targeting civilians and underscoring shortfalls in Beijing’s ability to respond.
Uighur activists say the violence is being fueled by restrictive and discriminatory policies imposed by China’s majority Han ethnic group.
SEEKING CHANGE: A hospital worker said she did not vote in previous elections, but ‘now I can see that maybe my vote can change the system and the country’ Voting closed yesterday across the Solomon Islands in the south Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret security pact that has raised fears of the Chinese navy gaining a foothold in the region. The Solomon Islands’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy weighed on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots. As many as 420,000 registered voters had their say across 50 national seats. For the first time, the national vote also coincided with elections for eight of the 10 local governments. Esther Maeluma cast her vote in the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was