A court in Tajikistan sentenced human rights lawyer Sukhrat Kudratov to nine years in prison, in what Amnesty International called "a serious setback for the freedom of expression."
Facebook's deletion of a post by Tibetan writer Tsering Woeser comes just after Mark Zuckerberg met in Beijing with China's minister for Internet censorship Lu Wei.
The People's Court of Kashgar in China's Muslim-majority western region of Xinjiang sentenced 22 people to prison terms for "illegal religious activities" and related crimes.
Uighur exile leaders were quick to disavow an article in al-Qaeda's media service portraying harsh oppression of Muslims in "East Turkistan," or Xinjiang.
Satellite photos released by NASA reveal that the eastern basin of the Aral Sea has completely dried up. Water levels are less than 10% of what they were 50 years ago.
In a little-noted irony, as Vladiimir Putin backs the "People's Republics" in eastern Ukraine, he has cracked down on a separatist movement that has emerged in Siberia.
Chinese authorities say more than 100 were killed in violence in Xinjiang on Eid al-Fitr; the riots may have been in reaction to official restrictions on honoring the holy day.
Chinese authorities in Xinjiang are stepping up sweeps and security measures in the wake of a new attack—and have barred public officials from fasting for Ramadan.
Students for a Free Tibet have issued an urgent appeal for Khenpo Kartse, an ailing Buddhist abbot and human rights defender imprisoned for over six months in harsh conditions.
International rights groups welcomed the release of Tibetan film-maker Dhondup Wangchen, imprisoned in China in 2008 for shooting the documentary Leaving Fear Behind.
Chinese officials in Xinjiang held a public rally at a sports stadium for the mass sentencing of accused "terrorists," in which 55 were sentenced before a crowd of 7,000 people.
The deadly assault on a marketplace in Urumqi makes brief headlines, while the ongoing repression and humiliation of the Uighurs that fuels such attacks is little noted.
