Urumqi: Nine suspects believed to be responsible for syringe attacks in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region communities of Hotan, Altay and Kashgar are in custody.

The arrests follow reports of syringe attacks in several cities in the autonomous region after a spate of similar attacks in the region's capital, Urumqi, that led to massive protests.

Six of the suspects were caught in Hotan, according to the Hotan public security bureau on the local government's website on Wednesday.