1989–2006 2007–present The 2015 Aksu colliery attack , also known as the Baicheng incident[4] took place on 18 September 2015, when a group of separatists, suspected to be Uyghurs,[5] attacked workers and security guards at a coal mine in Baicheng County in Aksu, Xinjiang, leaving at least 16 dead and 18 wounded according to government sources, with other estimates reaching as high as 50 dead and 50 wounded.

During the celebrations, Yu Zhengsheng, who was then the Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, made a statement advocating that troops in the region should play a bigger role in fighting separatism, terrorism and extremism.

[7] Chinese media initially reported 16 dead, but according to local sources, at least 50 people were killed, five of whom were police officers.

Authorities kept news of the attack from spreading until mid-November, while local media was slow to report on it.

[9] The manhunt concluded with a total of 28 assailants killed; one member of the group surrendered after being urged to do so by his grandfather according to authorities.