Imam condemns attacks in Kashgar

KASHGAR, Xinjiang - A religious leader with the Xinjiang Islamic Association said on Tuesday that the "three forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism have "no place" among most Muslims living in Kashgar and Xinjiang.

"People from different ethnic groups, especially Uygurs and Hans, have been coexisting peacefully in Xinjiang for centuries," said Jume Tahir, a member of the standing committee of the Xinjiang Islamic Association and the imam of the Id Kah Mosque in Kashgar, which is the largest of its kind in China.

"A handful of religious extremists and terrorists will never disrupt the interdependent relationship that exists between Uygurs and Hans."