Videos shared on social media in China show fresh protests against Covid restrictions, after 10 people died in an apartment block fire.
In Urumqi, people are seen confronting authorities, breaking a barricade and chanting “End Covid Lockdown”.
Despite a strict zero-covid policy, infections in China have reached new heights.
Authorities in Urumqi have now promised to lift the restrictions – although deny that those who escaped Thursday’s fire have been stopped.
The city – the capital of western Xinjiang region – has been under restrictions since early August.
After the incident, a resident told JEE News that people living in the compound affected by the fire have been largely prevented from leaving their homes.
Which is disputed by China’s official media. However, Urumqi authorities issued an extraordinary apology late on Friday – vowing to punish anyone who shirked their duty.
Footage shared on Friday night showed residents, many wearing face masks, gathering on city streets after dark.
They were seen shouting slogans, raising their first voices and arguing with officials. The news agency Reuters has confirmed this location.
A protester shouts through a megaphone, and in another clip, a crowd breaks through a police barricade by city workers wearing protective gear.
Live streams monitored by JEE News on Friday night showed protesters gathering on the steps of the city’s government building.
The Internet is heavily censored in China, and references to the Urumqi protests were largely removed by Saturday morning.
Local media said Thursday’s fatal fire at an Urumqi apartment block – in which nine people were injured – appeared to have been caused by a faulty power extension.
Online posts have suggested that efforts to put out the fire have been hampered by Covid restrictions.
This has been denied by city officials, who have tried to blame parked vehicles for blocking firefighters’ access to the burning building.
At a press conference on Saturday morning, he announced a phased relaxation of lockdown conditions in parts of Urumqi that are considered low-risk.
He did not refer to the protests, but said the community had largely cleared of Covid cases and “order” would be restored to the lives of city residents.
Large-scale, disruptive protests are rare in China, although public opposition to Beijing’s goal of a zero-covid strategy is growing.
It is the last policy of its kind in the world’s major economies, and is due in part to the country’s relatively low vaccination levels and an effort to protect the elderly.
Snap lockdowns have sparked anger across the country – and more widespread Covid restrictions have fueled recent violent protests from Zhengzhou to Guangzhou.
Despite the strict measures, China’s case count this week is at a record high since the pandemic began.
The Xinjiang region is home to many Uighurs, against whom the Chinese government has been accused of numerous human rights abuses – which it denies.
