China today sentenced 81 people, including 9 persons to death, and arrested 29 others for terrorism-related crimes in the troubled Xinjiang province as part of a nationwide crackdown on Islamist militants.
The nine were sentenced to death for "violent terrorism" crimes, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The sentences were reportedly related to those who were captured in number of violent incidents in Xinjiang and other parts of China allegedly by the militants belonging to the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM).
Chinese state media reported that multiple courts in China sentenced 81 people on terrorism-related charges.
China blames the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), an Al-Qaeda linked outfit, to the attacks in Xinjiang and in rest of China.
The ETIM, listed as terrorist group by UN, is fighting for the independence of Xinjiang, where native Muslim Uygurs deeply resent the increasing settlements of majority Hans from other provinces.
Xinjiang witnessed a spate of violent attacks including the recent multiple bomb explosions in Urumqi in which 43 people were killed 94 others injured.
Militants also carried a number of knife attacks in different railway stations in China prompting Chinese government to scale up security all over the country.
Xinjiang started a one-year campaign against terrorist violence in May. The campaign will last until June 2015.
The campaign will focus on terrorists and religious extremist groups, gun and explosive manufacturing dens and terrorist training camps.
