to the ethnic Uyghur population alone; Kazaks, Kyrgyz, Han Chinese and Hui commanders all joined in revolt against Jin's rule, though they would occasionally break to fight one another. The Soviet government further complicated the situation by dispatching troops to come to the aid of Jin and his military commander Sheng Shicai (盛世才), as did White Russian refugees from the Soviet Union living in the Ili River valley region. The main fighting initially centered around Urumchi, which Hui forces laid under siege until Sheng Shicai's troops were reinforced by White Russian and Manchurian soldiers who had previously fled the Japanese invasion of northeast China. In April 1933, Jin was deposed by a combination of these forces and succeeded by Sheng, who enjoyed Soviet support. Newly bolstered, Sheng split the opposing forces around Urumchi by offering several Uyghur commanders (led by Khoja Niyaz Hajji, an advisor to the newly elected Kumul Khan Nazir (聶滋爾), the second son of recently deceased Kumul Khan Maqsud Shah, and to Nazir's eldest son and his designated heir Bashir (伯錫爾) with whom he studied together in religious school " Khanliq " in Kumul in their childhood) positions of power in Southern Xinjiang if they would agree to turn against the Hui armies in the north, led by Ma Zhongying (馬仲英). Another Hui faction in Southern Xinjiang under command of Ma Zhancang (馬占倉), meanwhile, had struck an alliance with Uyghur forces located around Kucha under the leadership of Timur Beg, occupied Kucha without hostilities and proceeded to march towards Aksu, capturing the small town of Baicheng en route. On February 25, 1933 rebel forces entered Aksu Old City, shot all the Chinese residents and seized their property; it seemed probable that this was the work of Temur's men, as the Hui ( Tungan ) forces of Ma Zhancang are reported to have peacefully occupied Aksu New City, where they took possession of both the Arsenal and the Treasury, their contents were reportedly sent to Tungan Headquarters at Kara Shar. Later Ma Zhancang at the head of approximately 300 well-armed Tungan troops and Temur at the head of an estimated 4,700 ill-armed Uyghur irregulars resumed their advance on Maral Bashi and Kashgar. On April 13, 1933 Ma Shaowu (馬紹武), the Head of Chinese administration in Southern Xinjiang, ordered Chinese Brigadier Yang to leave Maral Bashi front and return to Kashgar with troops because of rapidly deteriorating of the