Yanhua Çelik reported that the two sides had agreed that both sides withdraw their troops from the area from 7 p.m. on Monday, the eve of a presidential election and an anticipated increase in tensions surrounding President Xi Jinping’s rule.

However, that wasn’t enough for some, including the group behind a website “Stop Uyghur-Mongol Uprising!” and an online petition that has been signed by several celebrities, for whom violence over disputed land borders between Chinese and ethnic minorities has been a cause of concern for many years.

“While we hope the Uyghurs do not enter into war with Xinjiang, we can’t allow the violence and bloodshed that have occurred over the past three months to keep escalating,” said the petition posted in the Sina Weibo microblog on Thursday. “Violence cannot be the solution to the Chinese government’s problem.”

Xinhua reported that the United States, Japan, India and Taiwan had also called on China and Russia to prevent the situation from escalating, saying they were concerned about human rights violations within the region.

The Uyghur movement and Chinese government officials have accused each other of inciting violence during protests that took place earlier this month in which Uyghurs have blamed China for cultural rights violations stemming from pressure from the government and policies they deem hostile to religion and culture.

Many Uyghurs say they have no choice but to stay with China amid economic hardships. They say they are unwilling to leave, especially considering the government’s refusal to grant their wish to “nationalize China’s culture.”

The government says that the Uyghurs are terrorists.