The United States on Saturday warned China that the sanctions against two Americans in the ongoing dispute over Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs were ‘baseless’. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the tit-for-tat sanctions would only highlight the ‘genocide’ in Xinjiang.

“Beijing’s attempts to intimidate and silence those speaking out for human rights and fundamental freedoms only contribute to the growing international scrutiny of the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang,” Blinken said in a statement.

China’s move came as a response to two countries imposing sanctions over the treatment of Uyghur minority in the country. China in response announced sanctions against 2 Americans, a Canadian and a rights advocacy body.

At least one million Uyghurs and people from other mostly Muslim groups have been held in camps in China’s Xinjiang region, according to rights groups, who accuse authorities of forcibly sterilizing women and imposing forced labor.

The European Union, Britain, Canada and the United States have sanctioned several members of Xinjiang’s political and economic hierarchy in coordinated action over the allegations, prompting retaliation from Beijing in the form of sanctions on individuals from the EU and Britain.

(With agency inputs)