BEIJING - Up to 140 people have been killed in riots in China's northwestern Xinjiang region, Chinese police said on Monday.
More than 820 people have been injured in riots in Urumchi late Sunday, police said. Officials fear death toll could rise.
The riots followed Sunday's peaceful demonstrations protesting a fight between Uighur and Han Chinese workers at a toy factory late June. Two Uighur workers had been killed in the strife.
Hundreds of buses and cars, including police cars, were set on fire and more than 200 stores were damaged in violence after protests, local media reported.
Chinese police have also arrested several hundred people who took part in the violence.
Several cars were still burning early in the morning, reports said.
Police have set up checkpoints on main roads to neighboring provinces and took tight security measures in streets and natural gas and power companies of Urumchi.
Urumchi is in the Uighur Autonomous Region that has a population of over 21 million. Nearly 11 million Uighurs, Mongols and Huis live in the region.