CFU PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 24, 2025, 2:00 PM EST
Contact: contact@campaignforuyghurs.org
+1 650-703-4523
https://campaignforuyghurs.org/

CFU Marks Three Years Since the Tragic Urumchi Fire

Washington, D.C. – Today, Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU) solemnly commemorates the victims of the tragic Urumchi Fire on November 24, 2022, in which at least 44 Uyghurs, including children, lost their lives in an apartment building in Urumchi, the capital of East Turkistan. These individuals were trapped under extreme lockdown measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. While official media reports claimed only 10 casualties, evidence from people living in the vicinity of the apartment building indicates a much higher death toll. 

During the pandemic, the Chinese regime enforced a draconian “Zero Covid” policy throughout China, however, in the Uyghur region, harsh restrictions disproportionately targeted Uyghurs amid the ongoing genocide. Authorities sealed apartment doors shut, confining families inside and creating conditions that led to starvation, denial of medical care, and a rise in suicides driven by prolonged isolation. When a deadly fire broke out, the residents were trapped in the horrific blaze with no way to escape.

The Urumchi Fire became a defining moment that exposed the brutality of the lockdowns and the Chinese regime’s indifference toward Uyghur lives. While officials attempted to silence public outrage and suppress information, the tragedy sparked rare expressions of dissent across China through the “White Paper Protest,” where people took to the streets to condemn censorship and demand accountability. However, three years later, Uyghurs are still denied truth, justice, and the ability to mourn the horrific incident. 

“The Urumchi Fire and the entirely preventable deaths it caused revealed the extreme measures imposed on our community and the regime’s blatant disregard for human life and dignity. This devastating incident should have served as a wake-up call for the international community to take urgent action against the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) crimes, yet the regime continues its genocide with complete impunity, including mass detention, forced labor, forced sterilizations, organ harvesting, and the systematic erasure of religious and ethnic identities. This failure is not only a violation of human rights but a stark indictment of the world’s commitment to democracy and justice,” noted CFU Executive Director Rushan Abbas. 

On this anniversary, CFU honors the victims of the Urumchi Fire and reaffirms its dedication to exposing and ending the ongoing genocide against the Uyghur people. We call on the international community to demand accountability, support the voices of survivors and families, and take decisive action to advance Uyghur human rights.