URUMQI - A violent clash between suspected terrorists and authorities in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has left 21 people dead, including 15 community workers and police officers and six of the suspects, local authorities said on Wednesday.

The attacks happened around Tuesday noon in a town of Bacu county, Kashgar prefecture, some 1,200 km southwest of Urumqi, regional capital of Xinjiang.

Three community workers discovered suspicious individuals and knives in the home of a local resident. They then reported the situation to their supervisors via phone, but were seized by the suspects who had been hiding in the house.

Police officers and community officials from the township rushed to the scene, but were attacked and killed by the suspects, who also killed the three community workers they had seized earlier and burned the house.

Other police officers who arrived at the scene shot the suspects and got the situation under control.

Two other people from the authorities were also injured in the clash, and eight terrorist suspects were captured.

An initial investigation has indicated that the suspects are all terrorists who were planning on violent attacks.

Further investigation into the case is under way.

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