Police on Wednesday rescued 54 children who were being held at an illegal missionary spot in Xinjiang, according to Tianshannet, a news website run by the regional government's information office.
A police station in Hotan, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, received a report on Wednesday from parents who said their children and others were being held at a missionary spot in the city.
The police rushed to the scene to rescue the children. During that attempt, a suspect in the case set off an explosive device, starting a fire.
Fifty-four children were rescued, 12 of whom were burnt and sent to a hospital.
Three suspects in the case were also detained, two of whom were injured. Three policemen were also injured.
In an initial investigation, local police determined the missionary was operating illegally.
The case is being investigated further.
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263 Registration Number: 130349 
