Tag Archives: Uighur

CHINESE officials describe the far western province of Xinjiang as a “core area” in the vast swathe of territory covered by the country’s grandiose “Belt and Road Initiative” to boost economic ties with Central Asia and regions beyond. They hope that wealth generated by the scheme will help to make …

According to an Israeli intelligence report, 3,000 members of the Uyghur Muslim minority joined al-Qaeda and ISIS in the war in Syria. China fears their return, which led them to cozy up to Assad to ensure their elimination. A report by the Israeli Foreign Ministry found that thousands of Chinese …

By Michael Clarke and Raffaello Pantucci for The National Interest — On August 14, Guan Youfei, a rear admiral in China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, visited the Syrian capital of Damascus, escorted around the city under heavy guard. Guan’s visit reportedly included meetings with senior military officials and Russian officers, …

The Levant News — Here is an interview with Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, President of Beirut Center For Middle East Studies, regarding the Uighur fighters in Syria: Q- Is there now clear and undisputed evidence emerging from Syria of a significant Uighur presence? What is their number? I have seen everything …

By Gerry Shih for The Associated Press – BEIJING — They have been praised by the leader of al Qaeda and wooed by the head of the Islamic State group. They have distinguished themselves on battlefields in Syria and are accused of carrying out a devastating bombing in Thailand. In …

By Olga Dzyubenko for Reuters – A suicide bomb attack on the Chinese embassy in the Kyrgyz capital last week was ordered by Uighur militants active in Syria and carried out by a member of the East Turkestan Islamic movement, Kyrgyzstan’s state security service said on Tuesday. The suicide bomber, …

The Levant News — China wants to have closer military ties with Syria, state media on Tuesday cited a senior Chinese officer as saying during a rare visit to the war-torn Middle Eastern country. While relying on the region for oil supplies, China tends to leave Middle Eastern diplomacy to …

The Levant News — The British government has officially listed the East Turkistan Islamic Movement as an Islamic terrorist and separatist organization. The latest list has officially listed the Turkistan Islamic Party as a terrorist group. The TIP is also known as the East Turkistan Islamic Party and the East …

Uyghur leader Dolkun Issa accuses Pakistan of turning a blind eye to the Muslims of Beijing. The Levant News — Uyghur leader Dolkun Issa has questioned Pakistan’s silence on the Beijing imposed ban on Xinjian’s Muslim population from observing Ramadan. In a statement which has been widely circulated across East …

Authorities in Urumqi ban women from wearing the burqa in the wake of a series of deadly clashes and attacks in China’s far west The Levant News — The capital of China’s most Muslim region has banned residents from wearing the burqa in “an effort to curb growing extremism”. Women …

By GIANCARLO ELIA VALORI — The autonomous region of Xinjiang, in the People’s Republic of China – with a relative majority of Turkmen Muslim people (45%) and the Han Chinese who since 1949 have risen from 6% to 41% of the population – is an issue not only for China, …

THE LEVANT NEWS EXCLUSIVE – By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem* — On 21 April 2016, China’s Special Envoy on Syrian crisis Chai Cho Yan visited Damascus and met with the Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Walid al-Moallem, and the head of the Syrian government’s delegation to the Geneva talks, Bashar al-Jaafari. …

By Lauren Dickey for War on the Rocks — China is trying to link Uighur militants to foreign-led extremist groups such as al-Qaeda and the so-called Islamic State. Well, Lauren Dickey isn’t buying it. The alleged linkages are truly opaque and don’t presage future Uighur attacks on Chinese soil. What …

By Rezaul H Laskar, Hindustan Times, New Delhi– The visa granted by India to Uyghur activist Dolkun Isa to attend a conference in Dharamsala was aimed more at sending a signal to China after it blocked a move to sanction Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar at the UN. Isa, a German …

By Sajjan M. Gohel for CTC – On October 28, 2013, a new phase of terrorist violence emerged in China. On that day a man drove a jeep packed with explosives and carrying his wife and mother into a crowd in Tiananmen Square, in the country’s capital Beijing. Two civilians …

THE LEVANT NEWS EXCLUSIVE – By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem* — On 21 April 2016, China’s Special Envoy on Syrian crisis Chai Cho Yan visited Damascus and met with the Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Walid al-Moallem, and the head of the Syrian government’s delegation to the Geneva talks, Bashar al-Jaafari. …