A court in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Tuesday sentenced three men to death and another one to life imprisonment after finding them guilty of attempting to hijack an aircraft in June.

The Intermediate People's Court in Hotan Prefecture ruled at the first instance that they were guilty of organizing, leading or participating in terrorist group, hijacking the aircraft, and attempting to detonate explosives on the aircraft.

Musa Yvsup and Arxidikali Yimin, who led a terrorist group and plotted the hijacking, and Eyumer Yimin, a major participant in the intrigue, were sentenced to death, according to a statement from the court.

Alem Musa, who played a minor role in the plane hijacking and pleaded guilty with a good attitude after being arrested, received a life sentence, said the statement.

All the defendants confessed the above crimes at the court.

On June 29, six people tried to hijack Tianjin Airlines' flight GS7554 after it took off from Hotan Airport and 1,400 km away from its destination, the regional capital city of Urumqi. They used converted metal crutches and explosives they carried in disguise, the statement said.

They were stopped by crew members and passengers while they were trying to detonate explosive devices, and two of the hijackers injured in the fighting later died despite medical treatment.

Twenty-four crew members and passengers were injured in the incident, which caused direct economic losses of 28.58 million yuan (4.58 million U.S. dollars), said the statement.

The court found that the group were influenced by religious extremists and terrorists from October 2011 to February 2012, and made preparations for their hijacking from mid May to June.

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