9 Chinese needle attack suspects arrested
Last Updated: Friday, September 11, 2009 | 10:29 AM ET
CBC News
Chinese authorities arrested nine new suspects in connection with alleged attacks involving hypodermic needles, a press officer in Urumqi said Friday.
The suspects were recently detained in Hotan, Altay, and Kashgar — cities in Xinjiang province.
Since last week, more than 500 people in Urumqi have reported attacks, though only about 100 showed evidence of being pricked. None of the reported victims has suffered from illness, poisoning or other effects.
The bizarre stabbings led to mass demonstrations by tens of thousands of Han Chinese earlier this month against what they said was a government that can't guarantee their safety.
The needle assaults have aggravated tensions in the restive western region of Xinjiang where ethnic riots between Han Chinese and Muslim Uighurs in July left nearly 200 dead, the worst unrest in China in decades.
With files from The Associated Press
