China tightens Xinjiang border amid rising terrorist threats

China is tightening border controls in its northwestern Xinjiang region amid rising terrorism threats, the regional governor was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

State media reported that Shohrat Zakir made the pledge in a speech at the region’s main annual political meeting on Monday, saying increased measures taken in the last year would be further strengthened.

The crackdown seeks to prevent suspected insurgents both from leaving Xinjiang to fight abroad and from returning to the region after receiving military training overseas, China Daily reported.

Xinjiang has long been home to a simmering insurgency against Beijing’s rule waged by extremists among the native Turkic-speaking Uygur ethnic group, who are mainly Muslim and culturally distinct from most Chinese. Many Uygurs already face onerous restrictions on where they can work and travel, including extreme difficulties in obtaining passports.

Xinjiang shares a border with Afghanistan, Pakistan and four nations in the often volatile Central Asian region, whose native populations share ethnic, linguistic and religious links with Uygurs. Uygur extremists have also been reported to have joined the fighting in Syria and were blamed for a deadly attack on a Buddhist temple in Thailand.