More than a hundred Muslim cemeteries appear to have been destroyed in China, according to an investigation by CNN.In an article on Wednesday, CNN reported that “China appears to have been destroying traditional Uyghur cemeteries for several years,” as part of its crackdown on Uyghyr Muslims in the country.
“In a months’ long investigation, working with sources in the Uyghur community and analyzing hundreds of satellite images, CNN has found more than 100 cemeteries that have been destroyed, most in just the last two years,” the network revealed. “This reporting was backed up by dozens of official Chinese government notices announcing the ‘relocation’ of cemeteries.”
CNN also published side-by-side photographs of the cemeteries before and after their removal, showing the extent of the destruction.
Historian Rian Thum said, “This is absolutely a massive effort to eradicate Uyghur culture as we know it and replace it with a Chinese communist party approved culture.”
“It’s akin for an American to see Arlington cemetery razed and the tomb of the unknown soldier dug up and paved over,” he expressed, adding, “People would come to a shrine or cemetery from all over the Uyghur region for the annual pilgrimage festival… People pray for health and blessings, meet neighbors, share communal feasts and shop at carnival-like markets.”
As previously noted by Mediaite’s Ken Meyer, “Numerous reports have documented the imprisonment, sociopolitical brainwashing, and other brutal actions the Communist Party has taken against at least a million Uighur Muslims” in the Xinjiang region of China.
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