East Turkistan Information Center Issues Comprehensive Report on Current Humanitarian Conditions and Urges International Action

Introduction: A Cry from the Heart of Central Asia

In light of the ongoing humanitarian tragedy faced by the people of East Turkistan (Xinjiang) under Chinese occupation, the **East Turkistan Information Center** released a comprehensive human rights report today, February 28, 2026, detailing the tragic developments of the humanitarian situation in the region. This report comes at a critical juncture, as Chinese policies have shifted from a "state of emergency" and loud mass detentions to a more dangerous phase: the "institutionalization of oppression." The region has been transformed into an open digital prison, posing an existential threat to the Islamic presence and ethnic identity of the Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples [1.11](https://arabi21.com).

Institutionalizing Genocide: From Camps to Prisons and Forced Labor

The report documents a strategic shift in the Chinese machinery of oppression during 2025 and 2026. While authorities closed some "re-education" camps that drew widespread international condemnation, the Center revealed that this was not a relief but a redistribution of detainees. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people have been transferred to the formal prison system for long terms or forced into labor within global supply chains under the guise of "labor transfer" [1.9](https://www.hrw.org) [1.11](https://arabi21.com).

The report indicates that China now employs "soft" and legalized repression. Biometric surveillance systems and artificial intelligence have replaced traditional checkpoints, creating a state of permanent self-censorship among Muslims for fear of arbitrary arrest, which can target anyone showing the slightest practice of religious rituals [1.11](https://arabi21.com).

The War on Islam: Erasing Identity and Desecrating Sanctities

From the perspective of the Islamic Ummah, the report highlights the crime of the "Sinicization of Islam." Documented data confirms that Chinese authorities have destroyed or severely damaged more than 16,000 mosques in the region, converting some into cafes or tourist centers in a blatant insult to the feelings of Muslims worldwide [1.20](https://www.tribuneindia.com).

Furthermore, the report notes the banning of fasting, prayer, and the wearing of the hijab, while criminalizing the possession of the Quran or religious books. Authorities continue the policy of separating children from their Muslim families, placing them in Chinese boarding schools for brainwashing and isolation from their religion and mother tongue—a process the Center describes as "cultural and religious genocide" aimed at completely erasing Islam from the region [1.10](https://hakaaikwaaraa.ma) [1.18](https://yetimvakfi.org.tr).

Transnational Repression: The Tragedy of Refugees in Thailand

The report bitterly addresses the case of 40 Uyghur men forcibly returned to China by Thai authorities in February 2025 under immense political pressure from Beijing. By February 2026, the fate of these men remains unknown, amid serious fears that they have been subjected to torture or execution [1.3](https://www.hrw.org) [1.5](https://www.ohchr.org).

This incident, as the Center explains, is part of a broader pattern of "transnational repression," where China pursues Uyghur activists even in the heart of Europe and the United States, exerting pressure on their families back home to silence them [1.4](https://www.uyghurcongress.org). This Chinese security expansion represents a challenge to state sovereignty and a test of the international community's commitment to the principle of "non-refoulement."

The Stance of the Islamic Ummah: Between Religious Duty and Political Interests

The East Turkistan Information Center directed sharp criticism at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), especially following the visit of the Organization's Secretary-General, Hissein Brahim Taha, to China in January 2026 [1.26](https://osbu-oic.org). The Center considered such visits, which rely solely on the official Chinese narrative, as granting false legitimacy to genocidal policies and a betrayal of the trust placed in the Organization to protect Muslim interests [1.20](https://www.tribuneindia.com).

The report emphasized that the issue of East Turkistan is not merely an international human rights issue but a deep wound in the body of the Islamic Ummah. It called upon Muslim peoples, scholars, and thinkers to break the silence and pressure their governments to take firm positions proportional to the scale of the tragedy, affirming that "a Muslim is a brother to a Muslim; he does not wrong him nor does he fail him" [1.14](https://www.ihh.org.tr).

An Urgent Appeal to the International Community

In concluding its report, the East Turkistan Information Center issued an urgent appeal including the following demands:

1. The United Nations: The need to update the Human Rights Commission's report on violations in Xinjiang and take actual steps to hold Chinese officials accountable for crimes against humanity [1.9](https://www.hrw.org).
2. Organization of Islamic Cooperation: Cease beautifying the image of the Chinese regime and form an independent fact-finding committee to visit the region without restrictions [1.14](https://www.ihh.org.tr).
3. Islamic and Global Nations: Activate laws prohibiting the import of goods produced by Uyghur forced labor and impose economic and diplomatic sanctions on companies and officials involved in the repression [1.11](https://arabi21.com) [1.16](https://east-turkistan.net).
4. Refugee Protection: Halt all forced deportations of Uyghurs from third countries and ensure they are granted the right to asylum and protection [1.8](https://www.campaignforuyghurs.org).

Conclusion: Hope in Justice

The comprehensive 2026 report by the East Turkistan Information Center is not just a human rights document; it is a cry for help from a people facing the risk of being erased from the map of existence. Continued international silence, especially from the Islamic world, serves as a green light for Beijing to proceed with its colonial and repressive project. Hope remains tied to the awakening of the global conscience and the solidarity of the Islamic Ummah to restore the dignity and rights of their brothers in East Turkistan—a land that was and remains a beacon of Islamic civilization in the heart of Asia.