British chain IHG has allegedly violated sanctions by building hotels in China’s Xinjiang region, where MPs have said a genocide is taking place.

A report by the Uyghur Human Rights Group claims that IHG, owner of large brands including InterContinental and Holiday Inn, is running hotels in areas overseen by the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC).

XPCC is a Chinese government paramilitary organisation which has been sanctioned by the UK, US, Canada and EU for grave and systematic human rights violations.

Restrictions have also been imposed in the UK to ensure British organisations are not complicit in, nor profiting from, human rights abuses in Xinjiang against Muslim groups, including Uyghurs.

By conducting business there, IHG and other hotel chains are allegedly participating in the broader suppression, because they are profiting from tourism in the region after many locals were arbitrarily detained.