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Riots Spread Outside Tibet

Protesters torch marketplace, police station in Sichuan province

By Caroline Zimmerman, Newser User

Posted Mar 16, 2008 12:07 PM CDT

(Newser) – Following violent protests against Chinese rule that left 80 dead in Lhasa, according to the exiled Tibetan government, rioting flared today in a province bordering Tibet. Ethnic Tibetans in Sichuan besieged the main government building and set fire to a police station and marketplace. "They've gone crazy," one police officer told Reuters. Police have shot at least seven protesters to death, Tibetan sources say; Beijing disputes the figure.

The spreading violence came as the Dalai Lama met with reporters today, calling for an investigation of what he called China's "cultural genocide" in the region. But a Chinese security crackdown in Lhasa over the weekend has restored a strained calm there as the country preps for the Olympics kick-off next week, and protests are expected to remain localized.

Tibetan monks offer prayers to those killed in the ancient Tibetan capital of Lhasa during the Chinese crackdown there on protestors at a monastery in Katmandu, Nepal, Sunday, March 16, 2008. (Associated Press)

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama gestures during a press meeting in Dharamsala, India, Sunday, March 16, 2008. (Associated Press)

In this image taken from Cable TV video and provided by APTN, armored personnel carrier equipped with guns drives down street in Lhasa,Sunday, March 16, 2008. (Associated Press)

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Riots Spread Outside Tibet

Protesters torch marketplace, police station in Sichuan province

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China Clamps Down on Tibetans

Towns 'like armed camps' as Beijing tries to regain control

China Detains 59 in Tibet for 'Spreading Hate'

Activists accused of targeting ethnic Han migrants via music

China Plans 'Education' of Tibetan Monks

Beijing's move to enforce loyalty raises fears of more violence

Bush Urges China-Tibet Dialogue

Protesting monks disrupt tour of foreign journalists in Lhasa

China Slams Pelosi's Support for Tibet

House Speaker guilty of 'double standards,' state says

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OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

China • 2008 Beijing Olympics • Tibet • Dalai Lama • riots • Lhasa • Sichuan province

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

China Clamps Down on Tibetans

Towns 'like armed camps' as Beijing tries to regain control

China Detains 59 in Tibet for 'Spreading Hate'

Activists accused of targeting ethnic Han migrants via music

China Plans 'Education' of Tibetan Monks

Beijing's move to enforce loyalty raises fears of more violence

Bush Urges China-Tibet Dialogue

Protesting monks disrupt tour of foreign journalists in Lhasa

China Slams Pelosi's Support for Tibet

House Speaker guilty of 'double standards,' state says

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Newser By Users

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