Nepal arrests six Tibetans crossing from China

KATHMANDU, July 14 (AFP): Nepal has detained six Tibetans for illegally entering the country, police said Wednesday, in the first confirmed case of exiles fleeing China across the border for a year.

The six men, aged between 16 and 27, were held at a remote Himalayan village 120 kilometres (74 miles) northeast of the capital Kathmandu after crossing into Nepal on foot.

"They were arrested before dawn Tuesday by the local police," said Umesh Raj Joshi, deputy superintendent of Dolakha district, which borders Tibet. "We have already handed them over to the immigration authorities."

Thousands of Tibetans used to make the difficult and dangerous journey to Nepal every year, fleeing political and religious repression in China.

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