Man in Xinjiang detained for attack rumours

BEIJING - Police in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region have detained a man for spreading Internet rumours about an attack in July that left 37 civilians dead and another 13 injured, Chinese media said on Monday.

Authorities have said 59 terrorists were gunned down by security forces in Xinjiang's Shache county and 37 civilians were killed by masked attackers on July 28, one of the worst bouts of violent attacks in the region in years.

Crackdown on terrorist attacks

The official news website of the Xinjiang regional government said police detained a 22-year-old suspect for posting a fake account of the incident on overseas websites.

"So-called reports that were seriously inconsistent with the facts emerged on overseas websites, which fabricated horrifying details and deliberately incited ethnic hatred," the website, Tianshan.net, reported.

It said the rumour, which included graphic depictions of extreme violence by police, had been circulated by "hostile foreign forces" and had an "evil influence".

Tianshan said police detained the suspect, a man with a Uygur name who later confessed, on Aug 6.

"I didn't care if what I was writing was real or not. I just wanted to attract people's attention and have an influence on public opinion," it quoted the man as saying.

According to earlier media reports, a gang armed with knives and axes attacked a police station and government offices in Elixku Township, and some moved onto Huangdi Township, attacking civilians and smashing vehicles as they passed.