China has tightened its security measures ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown and following a string of separatist attacks.

In Beijing, police announced they were cancelling holiday for officers and would step up patrols at train stations, schools, hospitals and markets.

Beijing commuters are being forced to queue for up to an hour in the mornings and also at night as passengers undergo full-body security checks.

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Passengers line up and wait for a security check during morning rush hour at Tiantongyuan North underground railway station in Beijing Reuters
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A man looks up as he waits with other passengers for a security check Reuters

Anti-terrorist drills have been staged in Beijing and around the country after 43 people were killed in an attack at a vegetable market in the Xinjiang region.

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Beijing police officers, including the elite Snow Leopard Commando Unit, show off their skills at handling attempted terror attacks, hijackings and large-scale protests in Beijing AFP
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Reuters
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Police officers and commandos in Beijing show off their comabt skills, days ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown and following a string of separatist attacks AFP
china security drill
Riot policemen disperse mock rioters during an anti-terrorist drill in Beijing Reuters
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Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers practise shooting with pistols at a military base in Hami, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region Reuters
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Police officers take aim with their weapons at a man playing the role of an attacker as he holds a woman hostage during an anti-terrorism drill at a railway station in Zhengzhou Reuters
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Participants playing the roles of passengers block an assault from "attackers" during an anti-terrorism drill at a railway station in Yiwu, Zhejiang province Reuters

In a stadium filled with 7,000 people, a Chinese court announced guilty verdicts for 55 people on charges of terrorism, separatism and murder as the government tried to display its determination to combat unrest in the troubled northwest region.

At least one convict received a death sentence at the event in Yili, in northern Xinjiang near the Kazakhstan border, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

The Xinhua report gave few details about the cases, but defendants whose names were reported all appeared to be Uighurs, members of the region's biggest Muslim ethnic minority group.

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Trucks carrying criminals and suspects are seen during a mass sentencing rally at a stadium in Yili, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region Reuters
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