BEIJING (AP) — China executed 13 people on Monday over terrorism and violent crimes in the far western region of Xinjiang, including three men accused in an attack that left at least 34 people dead, state media said.

The executions took place on the same day that a Xinjiang court sentenced three other people to death for planning a deadly car ramming at Beijing's Tiananmen Gate last year that killed five people. The government has been waging a harsh crackdown after a series of deadly attacks blamed on Muslim separatists in the Xinjiang region.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the 13 executed people were convicted of crimes such as organizing, leading and participating in terrorism groups, arson, murder, burglary, and illegal manufacturing, storage and transporting of explosives.

The government says it faces grave terrorist threats from people seeking independence for Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uighur ethnic minority, and has vowed severe punishments.

Among those executed, three men organized an assault that killed 24 people last June in the town of Lukqun, Xinhua said. It said the attack targeted the local police station, a SWAT team, a government office building and the living quarters for officials and their families, a housing construction site, a business administration office, as well as a hair salon and a hotel. Xinhua earlier reported that police had killed at least 10 of the attackers and that the three men were sentenced to death last September in a one-day trial.

Xinhua said a fourth person who was executed had detonated an explosive device at an illegal preaching site in June 2012, killing a child.

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In this May 23, 2014 photo, armed paramilitary policemen ride on a truck during an anti-terrorism oa …

It did not provide any details of the remaining nine people.

Simmering ethnic tensions in Xinjiang have escalated in the past year, as assailants have begun to strike outside the region and at civilians, a departure from their previous targets of government offices, police stations or other symbols of rule by the ethnic Han Chinese majority.

Beijing says unrest among Uighurs is caused by extremist groups with ties to Islamic terror groups abroad, but has provided little direct evidence.

Uighur activists say public resentment against Beijing is fueled by an influx of Han settlers in the region, economic disenfranchisement and onerous restrictions on Uighur religious and cultural practices.

Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the German-based group World Uyghur Congress, said Beijing has unjustly labeled disgruntled Uighurs as terrorists.

CHINA IS TRYING TO PUT AN END TO TERRORIST GROUPSPlay Video

"China's policy has caused extreme acts, and it is the only fight Uighur people in desperation are willing to wage with their lives," Dilxat Raxit said.

A court in the Xinjiang regional capital of Urumqi sentenced three other people to death Monday for planning the deadly car ramming, the first attack to strike Beijing in recent years.

The three were accused of providing funds to carry out the Oct. 28 attack, in which a car plowed through tourists and ended up in a fiery crash in the heart of Beijing. It killed a Chinese visitor and a tourist from the Philippines, along with the vehicle's driver, his wife and mother-in-law, according to Chinese authorities.

Five other people were given prison sentences, with four receiving terms of five to 20 years and one getting a life sentence, Xinhua said.

They had traveled to Beijing on Oct. 7, 2013, to deliver money to buy a jeep, gasoline, knives and other materials related to the attack, Xinhua said.

The eight were arrested within days of the incident.

Dilxat Raxit said the speedy trials were politically motivated and deprived the defendants of their legal rights.

The Tiananmen Gate attack was followed by similar incidents, including one on May 22 in which men driving off-road vehicles and throwing explosives plowed through a crowded market in Urumqi, killing 39 people. Police said four suspects were killed at the scene and a fifth was caught that evening in an area about 250 kilometers (150 miles) south of Urumqi.

Death sentences in China are automatically forwarded to the Supreme People's Court for appeal but are rarely overturned. While official figures are not released, China is believed to execute more prisoners than the rest of the world combined.

Pakistan launches huge military operation after airport attack

BANNU, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani jets pounded targets in the country's northwest on Monday as the military waged an offensive against militant safe havens that killed 37 fighters, while insurgents fought back with a roadside bomb that killed six soldiers, the first army casualties of the operation, the military said.

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The airstrikes are part of a long-awaited operation against foreign and local militants in North Waziristan, an essentially lawless tribal region which has served as a training base for militants and a staging point for insurgents who attack Pakistan and NATO and Afghan troops across the border. The operation started Sunday.

The United States has for years complained to Pakistan about its failure to impose order in a region harboring what Washington considers the country's most dangerous militants, and has carried out hundreds of drone strikes in the area.

The offensive marks the end of the government's policy of trying to negotiate with Pakistani Taliban militants instead of using force to end years of fighting which has killed tens of thousands of civilians and security forces.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has promoted the talks, defended military action during a speech to parliament on Monday. Sharif said the government had tried for more than four months to talk to the militants but their violence continued. He said Pakistan could not become a safe haven for militants.

The airstrikes early Monday targeted six hideouts in the Shawal area near the border with South Waziristan, a neighboring tribal region, killing 27 militants, the military said.

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Map of Pakistan's northwest tribal region, where thousands of troops launched an offensive June …

Separately, the military said seven militants were killed trying to escape Mir Ali, one of the two main towns in North Waziristan, and another three were killed by snipers while trying to lay roadside bombs near Miran Shah, the region's other main town. Three Pakistani troops were wounded in an exchange of fire with militants.

The military said in a statement that six troops died and three were wounded by the roadside bomb as the Pakistani Taliban warned that more violence could be in the offing.

A spokesman for the militants warned in a statement sent to reporters that international investors, foreign airlines and multinational organizations should leave Pakistan or they'd be considered supporters of the government and fair game.

Shahidullah Shahid also vowed to retaliate in the cities of Islamabad and Lahore, saying they would burn the mansions of the country's rulers. Those cities have largely been spared the bombings and shootings that plague places like Karachi and Peshawar.

Security was being stepped up across Pakistan. In Karachi, a city vital to the country's economy, armored personnel carriers could be seen rolling out the gates of a military base. The military said they were being used to protect sensitive installations.

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In this file photo taken on Aug. 5, 2012, Pakistani Taliban patrol in their stronghold of Shawal in …

Few details have been released about the size of the operation or the military assets involved.

The military said troops were sealing off the North Waziristan borders and the main cities, ensuring the evacuation of civilians in addition to establishing areas where militants can surrender their weapons. The military said the campaign was progressing as planned and that no operations had been launched in civilian areas so far.

Residents reached by telephone reported hearing loud explosions overnight but said they cannot go outside because there is a curfew in place.

"We have been just hearing big bangs and explosions. We can't go out to see what's happening out there," Sajid Dawar, a resident of Miran Shah, said by telephone. He urged authorities to help people leave as quickly as possible.

Another resident, Ziaullah Khan from Mir Ali, said people were starting to run out of food because the markets had been closed for a few days.

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Pakistani police officers check identities of motorcyclists in Bannu near the tribal area of North W …

North Waziristan is one of the last parts of the tribal regions where the military has not launched a large operation. Militant groups including the Pakistani Taliban, al-Qaida and the Haqqani network have long used the region as a base.

The Pakistani military said it has asked the Afghan government for help reinforcing its side of the border, to prevent militants from fleeing.

Afghanistan and Pakistan have argued repeatedly over violence along the porous border, accusing each other of failing to act against insurgents.

Kabul accuses Pakistan of failing to take action against militants such as the Haqqani network, who are believed to be responsible for some high-profile attacks in Afghanistan.

Critics also say Pakistan maintains a so-called "good Taliban, bad Taliban" policy in which it combats the Pakistani Taliban, who attack the state, but tolerates or supports the Afghan Taliban in order to maintain influence in the neighboring country.

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FILE - In this Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009 file photo, Pakistani troops walk on a hilltop post near Ladha …

The offensive comes a week after militants laid siege to Pakistan's largest airport in an attack that shocked the country and appeared to mark a turning point in the government's thinking about military action.

But the large military operation could spark a wave of bloody reprisal attacks, especially in Karachi or Peshawar, where militants already have a sizeable presence.

Even before the airstrikes, residents in North Waziristan were leaving the area due to previous airstrikes and fear of a larger operation. So far 50,000 people have left, provincial Gov. Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan said.

Nawal Khan Dawar from Mir Ali said he arrived in Bannu six days ago with his family after an airstrike nearby destroyed several houses. He said he rented a house for his family but, without any work, he doesn't know how long they'll be able to stay. He's worried about other family members still in North Waziristan.

"We don't know what is happening with them. We have not heard from them," he said.

Some of the displaced were even going to Afghanistan. Mubariz Mohammad Zadran, a spokesman for the provincial governor of Afghanistan's Khost province, said over the last two weeks more than 400 families have entered from North Waziristan.

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Santana reported from Islamabad. Asif Shahzad and Zarar Khan contributed from Islamabad, Adil Jawad in Karachi and Rahim Faiez from Kabul.

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Pakistan steps up strikes against militants

The lawless area targeted has long been a staging area for attacks on U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
37 militants killed

By Natalia Zinets

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's president said on Monday he had ordered troops to regain control of the frontier with Russia to pave the way for a truce and peace talks after weeks of fighting with pro-Russian separatists.

President Petro Poroshenko did not say how long the truce should last in Ukraine's east, where the rebels have risen up against central rule, but he said it could start only if the long and porous border was secure.

His remarks underlined his concern that Russia is supporting the rebels by sending tanks, guns and fighters across the border, especially after the separatists shot down a military transport plane on Saturday. Russia denies the accusation.

"The ceasefire will be declared as soon as the border is secure," Poroshenko told a meeting of his Security Council, which groups security and defense chiefs. "Declaring a ceasefire while the border is open would be irresponsible."

Andriy Parubiy, the Secretary of the Security Council, later said Ukraine planned to erect unspecified structures at the frontier to reinforce it and demarcate the border more clearly on the Ukrainian side but gave no details.

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Ukrainian presid …

Poroshenko summoned the Security Council after promising a resolute response to the shooting down of the plane on Saturday near the eastern city of Luhansk, which killed 49 servicemen.

But his comments indicated that, rather than hit the rebels with the full might of his army, he would continue a two-pronged policy of trying to reach a peace deal and allowing civilians to be evacuated, while pressing on with a military campaign.

The initial rebel response was dismissive.

"No one believes a word Poroshenko says here. He said there would be a humanitarian corridor for women and children and half an hour later they were shelling (the city of) Slaviansk," said a spokesman for the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic.

He described it as a ceasefire "just for us and they'll stay on the offensive. Let's see if they stop shooting first.'

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A pro-Russian fighter guards the site of remnants of a downed Ukrainian army aircraft Il-76 at the a …

AMNESTY, DECENTRALIZATION

The separatists rose up against rule from Kiev in April following the removal of a president who was sympathetic to Moscow, and Russia's subsequent annexation of the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea.

Scores of government troops, rebels and civilians have been killed in fighting since then but unleashing the armed forces' full strength might antagonize President Vladimir Putin and increase pressure on him in Russia to invade east Ukraine.

Since he was sworn in on June 7, Poroshenko has been trying to win agreement for his peace proposals while intensifying the "Anti-Terrorist Operation" to prise the rebels out of several towns and cities they hold in the Russian-speaking east.

Poroshenko said his proposals included constitutional changes to allow more decentralization of power, a demand made by many people in eastern Ukraine.

"There are key elements on decentralizing power in the peace plan ... There are constitutional changes," he said, also holding out the possibility of an amnesty for fighters who lay down their arms and flee to Russia.

He said government forces had already re-established control of a more than 250-km (156-mile) stretch of the about 2,000-km land border with Russia.

(Additional reporting by Alessandra Prentice in Donetsk and Aleksandar Vasovic in Slaviansk, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

TouchVision

HOW AMERICA CAN ATTACK ISIS

Washington (AFP) - A US warship entered the Persian Gulf on Monday carrying hundreds of marines and Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft in case they are needed to protect Americans in Iraq, the Pentagon said.

"Its presence in the Gulf adds to that of other US naval ships already there -- including the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush -- and provides the commander-in-chief additional options to protect American citizens and interests in Iraq, should he choose to use them," Rear Admiral John Kirby said.

The USS Mesa Verde, an amphibious dock ship, is carrying 550 Marines, as well as MV-22 Osprey aircraft capable of quickly moving up to 22 marines at a time over long distances.

The deployment comes in the wake of a stunning offensive by Islamist militants across Sunni areas of northern Iraq that has left Iraqi army forces in disarray.

President Barack Obama is weighing US options, including possible air strikes to halt the Islamist advance toward Baghdad, officials said.

The US embassy in Baghdad has begun reducing personnel in Iraq, and stepping up security

Kirby said the Mesa Verde has completed its transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

It followed the carrier USS George H.W. Bush, which entered the Gulf over the weekend with two warships armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles: the destroyer USS Truxton and the cruiser USS Philippines Sea.

The Bush carries 70 aircraft, including fighter jets and helicopters.

John Kerry: Airstrikes are on the table in Iraq (video)

Ship carrying 550 Marines arrives in Persian Gulf

The USS Mesa Verde also has MV-22 Osprey aircraft that can help defend U.S. interests.
Boosting embassy security

Obama considers special forces to help in Iraq

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is considering sending a small number of American special forces soldiers to Iraq in an urgent attempt to help the government in Baghdad slow the nation's rampant Sunni insurgency, U.S. officials said Monday.

While President Barack Obama has explicitly ruled out putting U.S. troops into direct combat in Iraq, the plan under consideration suggests he would be willing to send Americans into a collapsing security situation for training and other purposes.

Three U.S. officials familiar with ongoing discussions said the potential of sending special forces to Iraq is high on a list of military options that are being considered.

It's not clear how quickly the special forces could arrive in Iraq. It's also unknown whether they would remain in Baghdad or be sent to the nation's north, where the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has overrun several cities in the worst threat to the Shiite-led government since U.S. troops left in 2011.

White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said no combat troops would be sent to Iraq, but that the U.S. is looking at other options.

"The president was very clear that we will not be sending U.S. troops back into combat in Iraq," Hayden said in a statement. "That remains the case and he has asked his national security team to prepare a range of other options that could help support Iraqi security forces."

John Kerry: U.S. open to working with IranPlay Video

She said the U.S. has been increasing its security assistance to Baghdad over the last year, including training missions inside Iraq. One of the largest training missions was based at the air base in the city of Balad, about an hour northwest of Baghdad, where three planeloads of Americans were evacuated last week. They included 12 U.S. government officials and military personnel who have been training Iraqi forces to use fighter jets and surveillance drones.

The mission almost certainly would be small: one U.S. official said it could be up to 100 special forces soldiers. It also could be authorized only as an advising and training mission — meaning the soldiers would work closely with Iraqi forces that are fighting the insurgency but not officially be considered as combat troops.

The troops would fall under the authority of the U.S. ambassador and would not be authorized to engage in combat, another U.S. official said. Their mission is "non-operational training" of both regular and counter terrorism units, which the military has interpreted to mean training on military bases, not in the field, the official said.

The three U.S. officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the plans by name.

An Iraqi official did not deny the possibility of U.S. special forces returning to Iraq, but would only confirm that all options are being considered. The Iraqi official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive diplomatic issue more candidly.

John Kerry: U.S. won't demand Maliki resignPlay Video

Already, about 100 Marines and Army soldiers have been sent to Baghdad to help with embassy security, according to a U.S. official.

Obama made the end of the war in Iraq one of his signature campaign issues, and has touted the U.S. military withdrawal in December 2011 as one of his top foreign policy successes. Over the last week, as the ramped-up insurgency has captured large swaths of territory collaring Baghdad, Obama has been caught between Iraqi officials pleading for help and his anti-war political base which is demanding that the U.S. stay out of the fight.

The White House also is considering launching air strikes and increased surveillance over insurgent bastions to thwart ISIL's march toward Baghdad after capturing the Sunni-dominated cities of Fallujah, Mosul and Tikrit. The insurgency also has overrun smaller towns between Baghdad and the Syrian border, including on Monday the northwest city of Tal Afar.

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Associated Press writers Ken Dilanian and Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this report.