China Troops Seal Tibet Monasteries, Shops Set Ablaze

Chinese troops sealed off three of
Lhasa's largest monasteries after Tibet's biggest protests in
almost 20 years deteriorated into violence, with shops and police
cars set ablaze.

The protests began March 10 when hundreds of monks marched on
Lhasa's Ramoche monastery, calling for religious freedoms and the
release of imprisoned colleagues. The International Campaign for
Tibet said a police vehicle was set on fire in Lhasa today, while
shops on two streets also burned, China's state-owned Xinhua news
agency said, citing witnesses.

``We're afraid the situation in Lhasa has dramatically
escalated in the last few hours,'' the International Campaign for
Tibet's Communications Director Kate Saunders said today in a
telephone interview from London.