Wang Lequan, secretary of the Xinjiang regional committee of the Communist Party of China, on Tuesday called for avoiding confrontation between ethnic groups in the region.

Some Han people in Urumqi, the autonomous region's capital, took to the street in an emotional attempt to form a confrontation with the Uygur ethnic group Tuesday, Wang said in a televised speech Tuesday afternoon.

"It is completely unnecessary," Wang said.

"Everyone should keep a clear mind. We should target the hostile forces home and abroad instead of the brothers and sisters of different ethnic groups," he said.

"All the injured have received best medical treatment," said Wang.

The government would comfort and compensate bereaved families, and try hard to help restore business for those who suffered losses in the violence, Wang said.

The death toll from Sunday's riot in Urumqi has risen to 156, with 1,080 injured.

(Xinhua News Agency July 7, 2009)