BEIJING, 26 March, 2021, (TON): China authorized associations and people in the UK on Friday over what it called “lies and disinformation” about Xinjiang, days after Britain forced approvals for denials of basic freedoms in the western Chinese locale.

The Chinese foreign ministry (FM) said in a statement it sanctioned four entities and nine individuals, including lawmakers such as former Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan Smith and the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission that “maliciously spread lies and disinformation.”

Directed people and their close relatives are restricted from entering the Chinese region, the service said, adding that Chinese residents and establishments will be disallowed from working with them.

The move is a retaliation to a coordinated set of sanctions imposed by the United States, European Union, Britain and Canada against Beijing over what they say are human rights violations against the Uighur Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. Beijing has already applied retaliatory sanctions against the EU that were in line with Friday’s announcement.

“China is firmly determined to safeguard its national sovereignty, security and development interests, and warns the UK side not to go further down the wrong path,” the Chinese ministry said. “Otherwise, China will resolutely make further reactions.”

Activists and U.N. rights experts say at least 1 million Muslims have been detained in camps in Xinjiang. The activists and some Western politicians accuse China of using torture, forced labor and sterilizations. China has repeatedly denied all accusations of abuse and says its camps offer vocational training and are needed to fight extremism.