• Police break up small protest after Friday prayers
• DNA tests begin on victims of ethnic violence
Riot police broke up a small group of Uighur protesters outside a mosque in the troubled capital of Xinjiang after officials relented on an earlier decision to cancel Friday prayers.
Earlier, hundreds of Uighur men had gathered at the gates of mosques in Urumqi despite notices saying services were suspended. Officials cited “safety” reasons after brutal inter-ethnic attacks which began on Sunday.
Police had begun DNA testing to identify 156 people killed that day, thought to be primarily Han Chinese targeted by Uighur rioters, state media reported. The official news agency Xinhua said authorities would pay the families of “innocent” victims 200,000 yuan (about £18,000) compensation.
More than 1,000 people were injured in the riots. Subsequent days saw revenge attacks on Uighurs by Han Chinese, but no details of resulting fatalities or other casualties have been offered. Several Uighurs told the Guardian they believed at least four people had died.
The mood in the city appeared to have calmed but a heavy security presence remained, with armoured personnel carriers parked at the Grand Bazaar – where the violence began – and trucks full of troops touring the streets. Loudspeaker vans drove around the city urging people not to be swayed by “criminal elements”.
The attempt to close the mosques appeared to be prompted by the authorities’ anxieties about large crowds. At the Yang Hang mosque, Uighurs applauded and up to 400 worshippers carrying prayer mats flooded in as the doors were unlocked. A notice cancelling the day’s service disappeared from the front gate.
About 100 men won the day at the popular White mosque after demanding that guards allow them in for prayers. A Uighur policeman guarding the building, who declined to give his name, told the Associated Press: “We decided to open the mosque because so many people had gathered. We did not want an incident.”
At the Dong Kuruk Bridge mosque, one of several to remain closed, a young man told Reuters: “We feel we are being insulted. This is our mosque. But we are not allowed in, while they let in non-believers.”
He said Chinese security forces had been stationed inside and even in the minarets.
At another mosque, used primarily by Hui Muslims, Uighurs were among those allowed to enter but there was no formal service. “It’s a shame they don’t allow us to practise our religion,” said a passer-by.
Many people prayed at home instead, residents of Uighur neighbourhoods said.
The secretary-general of the Urumqi Islamic Association, who gave his name as Ma, denied the authorities had ordered the closures. But an official at the Urumqi Administration for Religious Affairs said only mosques in areas not affected by the violence were allowed to remain open.
Barry Sautman, an expert on China’s ethnic policies at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said the 23,000 mosques in Xinjiang gave it the highest mosque-to-Muslim ratio in the world. “It’s impossible to control such an extensive number of religious personnel,” he told AP.
About 30 or 40 Uighurs launched an impromptu march near the White mosque this afternoon, crying and pumping their fists in the air and demanding the release of men detained this week. One begged foreign reporters to stay with them as they walked.
“Every Uighur people are afraid,” Madina Ahtam told AP. “We are afraid … The problem? Police.”
Security forces initially stood back, but when the demonstration continued they surrounded and detained protesters. Footage shot by the BBC showed riot officers kicking one demonstrator and punching another in the face. They detained journalists filming events.
In Kashgar, a mainly Uighur city in southern Xinjiang, officials ordered foreign media to leave, escorting some journalists to the airport. They had earlier prevented them from leaving their rooms.
“There are no conditions for interviews in Kashgar, so we hope the foreign reporters will leave for their own safety,” said Chen Li, a media officer with the city government.
