China’s restive northwestern province of Xinjiang was hit by more violence at the weekend, when 11 people died in an attack on a police station in the same area where 21 died in clashes between ethnic Uighurs and police earlier this year, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Xinhua said two auxiliary police officers were killed when nine people armed with knives and axes attacked a police station in Selibuya township in Bachu county, in the ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar, the same area where serious violence broke out in April.

The nine assailants were shot dead, and two other policemen were injured, the report said. Independent confirmation of the report was not available, with the popular microblogging site Sina Weibo silent on the issue – usually a sign that posts are being blocked.