BEIJING: Two people were killed and “many” injured by multiple explosions in China’s Xinjiang, the local government said on Monday.

The blasts struck at least three locations in Luntai County in the region’s south on Sunday, including a shopping area, the Xinjiang government’s Tianshan web portal said.

The report did not say what caused the explosions or give a precise number of injured.

Clashes between locals and security forces in Xinjiang — located in China’s far west and home to the mostly-Muslim Uighur minority — as well as attacks targeting civilians have killed more than 200 people in the past year.

Beijing blames the violence on “terrorist” groups seeking independence for the region, while rights groups say that cultural and religious oppression of Uighurs has fuelled resentment.

Published in Dawn, September 23rd, 2014