China says showing restraint

Beijing: China claimed on Monday it was showing great restraint in the face of violent protests by Tibetans, claiming they were being orchestrated by followers of the Dalai Lama intent on wrecking the upcoming Olympic Games.

But reports said troops were pouring into neighbouring areas to enforce control in the wake of spreading protests, as the regional capital counted down to a midnight deadline for protesters to give up or face tougher punishment.

Qiangba Puncog, the Tibetan regional governor, said 13 "innocent civilians" had been killed by mobs in Lhasa.

But The Tibetan "government-in-exile" in Dharamsala in northern India said armed police were carrying out house-to-house searches in Lhasa and had arrested former "political prisoners" in the clampdown.

They put the death toll of protesters at the hands of the Chinese authorities at 80.

Residents contacted in Lhasa said the city was under tight police watch ahead of a Monday midnight deadline for protesters to give themselves up.

Foreign reporters are barred from travelling to Tibet without official permission and tourists have been asked to leave. Over a dozen Hong Kong journalists were forced out of Lhasa on Monday after being accused of illegal reporting.