China sentences two to death in death of pro-Beijing imam

A Chinese court has sentenced two people to death and another to life imprisonment for the murder of a state-backed imam in China's restive western region of Xinjiang, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

In late July, three people armed with knives and axes attacked Jume Tahir, a well-known pro-government ethnic Uighur who led prayers at China's biggest mosque, in Xinjiang, according to Chinese authorities.

Two of the attackers were later shot dead by police while the third, Nurmemet Abidili, was arrested.

Abidili and Gheni Hasan were sentenced to death on charges of forming and leading terrorist groups and murder, according to the verdict by the Kashgar Intermediate People's Court.

Last week, China sentenced Ilham Tohti, an ethnic Uighur who is an advocate for the rights of the Muslim Uighur people, to life in prison on separatist charges.

Xinhua said on Sunday that Hasan was influenced by religious extremism and led a gang, which trained members to kill patriotic religious figures.

Atawulla Tursun was sentenced to life in prison for taking part in terrorist groups and murder. State media previously said an 18-year-old named Aini Aishan, who was not mentioned in the verdict, was the mastermind behind the murder.

Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uighur people, has been beset by violence, which the government blames on separatists who want to establish an independent state.

Tahir was a controversial figure among Uighurs. In 2009, he backed the government after it quashed deadly riots in Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi, in which nearly 200 people were killed. His high-profile support for the government — state media  referred to him as a "patriotic religious personage" — and his criticism of violence in Xinjiang may have made him a target.

Reuters