BEIJING - Satellite images show that the Chinese government is destroying the Grand Bazaar, the largest international trade market in Kashgar, a famous oasis city in the northwestern province of Xinjiang. According to Radio Free Asia (RFA), located in a city over 2000 years old and is the most important stop on the historic Silk Road, Grand Bazaar has 4,000 shops selling more than 9,000 products on 250-acres of land.

Typical items sold at this market include spices, teas, silk, dried fruit, carpets, Uyghur musical instruments, Central Asia clothing, and skullcaps.

RFA cited one local official saying that the local government removed the symbol of Kashgar to build a new tourist attraction.

However, Uyghur activists and foreign scholars view that the destruction of the Grand Bazaar is really to serve the Chinese authorities’ ongoing plan to erase traditions and customs in the Xinjiang region.