Tibetan monasteries 'surrounded by soldiers'

Exiles arrested in India
Meanwhile, police in India detained more than 100 Tibetan exiles as they marched to their homeland Thursday in protest of China's hosting of the Olympic Games.

The protesters began a hunger strike within hours of being arrested, Tenzin Palkyi, a march coordinator, told The Associated Press.

The protesters shouted "Free Tibet!" and other slogans as they were being detained, but there was no violence, witnesses said. Senior police official Atul Fulzele said the protesters had been charged with threatening the region's "peace and tranquility."

But organizers vowed to continue the march.

"We will have to find a way," said Tenzin Palkyi, one of the march coordinators. "Our legal team will deal with the police."

Indian officials fear the march could embarrass Beijing and banned the exiles from leaving the Kangra district that surrounds the northern Indian city of Dharmsala, the headquarters of the Tibetan government-in-exile.

Nine foreigners who were marching with the Tibetans but were not arrested began a hunger strike of their own outside the building where the Tibetans were being held. The foreigners hail from the United States, Scotland, Germany, Poland and Australia.

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