'Terror attack' kills 15 in Xinjiang

Fifteen people have been killed and 14 others wounded in a "terrorist attack" in China's mostly Muslim Xinjiang region, the official Chinese news agency said yesterday.

A group of "terrorists" launched an attack on civilians Friday in Shache county, leaving four people dead and 14 wounded. Eleven "terrorists" were also shot dead during the violence, according to CCTV, China's state broadcaster.

Chinese state news agency Xinhua confirmed the death toll.

At around 1.30pm on Friday men armed with knives threw explosive devices and attacked crowds on commercial street, Xinhua reported.

The fresh unrest underscores the deterioration of the situation in Xinjiang, where Beijing has launched a severe crackdown in recent months with dozens of executions officially announced and hundreds of arrests, followed by speedy mass trials and the public exhibition of so-called "terrorists".