'Hijack attempt foiled' in China's Xinjiang 
 
 Continue reading the main story Related Stories 
 
 Crew and passengers foiled a hijack attempt by six people on a plane in the restive Xinjiang region, Chinese state media and an official say. The attempt was made just after the plane took off from Hotan in southern Xinjiang for the regional capital of Urumqi and the six suspects were detained after the plane returned safely, the Tianshan regional government's news portal said. The Tianjin Airlines plane had just taken off from Hotan and was bound for Urumqi when the incident occurred.
– A hijacking attempt on a Chinese plane was foiled today by passengers and crew just after departure, the AP reports, citing state media. The Tianjin Airlines plane had taken off from the remote city of Hotan in the restive far-western region of Xinjiang, and returned there safely 22 minutes later. Six suspects were detained. Hotan has seen clashes recently between the authorities and Muslim Uighurs, who resent government control; the BBC reports that the hijackers were Uighur men. The men reportedly used a broken crutch as a weapon during their attempt to get into the cockpit. Two on-board guards were seriously injured as the hijackers were overpowered, while seven passengers and one flight attendant suffered minor injuries, Reuters reports. Pictures on Sina Weibo, China's popular microblogging site, showed one of the suspects being held down by passengers, with what appears to be blood on a nearby seat. Chinese officials say they foiled another hijacking plot by an Uighur woman in 2008.