Tibet roils with protests

In the most serious unrest to shake the Tibetan capital of Lhasa in years, Buddhist monks and other ethnic Tibetans tangled with Chinese security forces last week, in clashes that left at least 20 protesters dead. The Tibetan demonstrations began peaceful

In the most serious unrest to shake the Tibetan capital of Lhasa in years, Buddhist monks and other ethnic Tibetans tangled with Chinese security forces last week, in clashes that left at least 20 protesters dead. The Tibetan demonstrations began peacefully as a protest against Chinese laws restricting Buddhist monks, but they soon degenerated into attacks on Chinese-owned businesses. China, which has occupied Tibet since 1950, responded with a harsh crackdown, arresting at least 1,000 people.

The Chinese government accused the Dalai Lama of engineering the riots from Dharamsala, India, where his government in exile has been based since 1959. The Tibetan spiritual leader called that allegation absurd and said he has always urged Tibetans to demonstrate peacefully. Underscoring that claim this week, he threatened to resign as head of the Tibetan government in exile if his countrymen’s violence continued.

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