ANKARA -- Turkey hopes that those responsible for riots in northwest China's Xinjiang region will be found out and brought to justice soon, the Foreign Ministry said Monday.

"We have learned with deep sorrow the incidents that took place yesterday (5th of July) in Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, situated at the north-west of the People's Republic of China," the semi-official Anatolia news agency quoted the ministry as saying in a statement.

"It is our expectation that the persons who are responsible for these incidents will be found out as soon as possible and brought to justice," the statement said.

The ministry expressed the belief that necessary measures would be taken to prevent such incidents in the future in China.

Xinjiang's regional police authorities said Monday night that the death toll has risen to 156 following riots Sunday evening in Urumqi. The deadly violence has also injured more than 800 people.