Three men were sentenced to death and another to life imprisonment by a court in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on Tuesday after being found guilty of attempting to hijack an aircraft in June.

The Intermediate People's Court in Hotan prefecture ruled that the men were guilty of organizing, leading or participating in a terrorist group, hijacking the aircraft and attempting to detonate explosives on board.

Musa Yvsup and Arxidikali Yimin, the leaders of the group who plotted the hijacking, and Eyumer Yimin, a major participant in the planning, were sentenced to death, according to a statement from the court.