Millions attend flag-raising ceremonies across Xinjiang

More than 10 million residents in over 10,000 communities of Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region conducted flag-raising ceremonies for National Security Education Day on Sunday.

Some 12,000 communities from the city of Urumqi, Kashgar prefecture, Hotan prefecture and Ili Kazak autonomous prefecture conducted ceremonies on Sunday, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Speeches on national security were delivered under the auspices of the general office of the Communist Party of China’s regional committee in Xinjiang. The speeches stressed the responsibilities of individuals and organizations, such as obeying national security rules, laws and regulations, reporting clues about activities harmful to national security and providing convenience and assistance to national security work.

The flag rising activity was one of a series of ongoing national security education activities this year, the Xinjiang Party committee office said.

All the residents of 24 villages in Ailixihu township, Shache county, Kashgar attended the activity. In August 2014, 37 civilians were killed and 13 injured in a terrorist attack in Shache, Xinhua reported. Fifty-nine attackers were shot dead and 215 arrested, according to the Xinjiang news website ts.cn.

The attack leader reportedly came from Ailixihu.