State media home in on large turnout of Urumqi blood donors

Hundreds of Urumqi residents donated blood to help victims of the violence as state media sought to project an image of daily life resuming following the curfew on Tuesday night.

Televised images showed a large group of donors at a blood donation centre in the city.

'The riot was caused by a few separatists and we should boycott it. I wanted to contribute to the community,' university student He Simeng, who donated 400ml of blood, told China Central Television.

An unnamed Uygur student donor said: 'Many innocent people were injured and we all have parents and siblings.'

A spokesman said the three blood donation centres in the city were well prepared to serve donors.

The last time queues formed outside blood donation centres in Urumqi was following last year's Sichuan earthquake, when donations broke city records.