A Chinese appeals court yesterday upheld death sentences for three people convicted over a mass stabbing that killed 31 people earlier this year, state media reported.
“The Higher People’s Court of Yunnan Province rejected Hasayn Muhammad’s appeal and upheld the penalty meted out by the Kunming Municipal Intermediate People’s Court last month,” Xinhua news agency said in a brief dispatch from Kunming.
The Intermediate People’s Court in the southwestern Chinese city had convicted and sentenced to death Muhammad and two others for “leading a terrorist group” which planned and carried out the attack at the city’s railway station on March 1.
Though Xinhua only mentioned Muhammad’s appeal, it said that the court upheld the sentences of the other two men as well.
In a separate report on its Web site, Xinhua said the court also upheld a term of life in prison for a pregnant woman also convicted of taking part in the attack.
The next step in the judicial process is for the death sentences to be reviewed by China’s Supreme Court.
The bloodshed in Kunming, located in the southwestern province of Yunnan, also saw more than 140 people wounded and was dubbed “China’s 9/11” by state-run media.
Beijing blamed it on “separatists” from the resource-rich far western region of Xinjiang, where at least 200 have died in attacks and clashes between locals and security forces over the last year.
The mass stabbing in Kunming was the biggest-ever violent incident against civilians outside the region. Incidents have grown in scale and sophistication and have spread outside the restive area since late last year.
Rights groups accuse China’s government of cultural and religious repression they say fuels unrest in Xinjiang, which borders Central Asia.
China defends its policies, arguing it has boosted economic development in the area and that it upholds minority and religious rights in a nation with 56 recognized ethnic groups.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
A documentary whose main subject, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza weeks before it premiered at Cannes stunned viewers into silence at the festival on Thursday. As the cinema lights came back on, filmmaker Sepideh Farsi held up an image of the young Palestinian woman killed with younger siblings on April 16, and encouraged the audience to stand up and clap to pay tribute. “To kill a child, to kill a photographer is unacceptable,” Farsi said. “There are still children to save. It must be done fast,” the exiled Iranian filmmaker added. With Israel
Africa has established the continent’s first space agency to boost Earth observation and data sharing at a time when a more hostile global context is limiting the availability of climate and weather information. The African Space Agency opened its doors last month under the umbrella of the African Union and is headquartered in Cairo. The new organization, which is still being set up and hiring people in key positions, is to coordinate existing national space programs. It aims to improve the continent’s space infrastructure by launching satellites, setting up weather stations and making sure data can be shared across
RSS