Chinese FM spokesperson on trial of terrorist suspect

A terrorist suspect is being tried on terrorism charges by relevant Chinese departments in accordance with the law, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Thursday.

The trial of Huseyin Celil will be held in Urumqi, capital city of China's western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

"He is a key member of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which is a terrorist organization defined by the United Nations, and he is suspected of being involved in a series of violent terrorist activities," Jiang said.

In response to a question whether China would allow Canadian diplomats to attend the trial, Jiang said Celil is a Chinese citizen and the consular agreement between China and Canada does not apply to this case.

Celil was taken as a refugee by Canada in 2001 and he was arrested in Uzbekistan in 2006 and extradited to China on terrorism charges.

Source: Xinhua