About our Tibet news
Latest news on Tibet, covering Tibet-China relations, the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhism, the Tibetan plateau, Lhasa and the exiled Tibetan government.
Tibet, often called the 'roof of the world', is a vast plateau region in Central Asia surrounding the Himalayas and Mount Everest, bordered by Xinjiang, Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan, and by India, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar. Administered by Beijing as the Tibet Autonomous Region, with Lhasa as its capital and home to the Potala Palace, the region has a majority ethnic Tibetan population alongside a substantial Han Chinese presence. China regards Tibet as an inseparable part of its territory, a position the exiled Tibetan government and much of the Tibetan diaspora dispute.
Tibet remains at the centre of several long-running disputes. Chief among them is the question of who will recognise the next Dalai Lama: the Dalai Lama's own Gaden Phodrang Trust insists it alone holds that authority, while Beijing claims the right to approve any reincarnation, a disagreement that human rights groups and Western governments have described as an attempt at religious interference. Rights organisations have also reported on monastery demolitions, restrictions on Tibetan-language education and tight controls on religious and cultural expression, claims Chinese authorities reject. A large hydropower project on the Yarlung Tsangpo river has separately raised concerns in India and Bangladesh over downstream water flows.
Tibetan Buddhism sits at the heart of daily life and culture, expressed through monasteries such as Sera, Drepung and Jokhang Temple, the observance of Losar, or Tibetan New Year, and the traditions of Tibet's nomadic pastoralist communities. The Tibetan language and script, along with customs including butter tea and tsampa, remain central markers of identity both within Tibet and among diaspora communities in India, Nepal and beyond. Tibet's dramatic landscapes, from high-altitude lakes to Everest's northern approaches, also draw visitors interested in trekking and mountaineering.
Tibet's recorded history stretches back to the seventh-century Tibetan Empire, when Buddhism first took root in the region. Centuries of shifting relations with Chinese dynasties followed before the People's Liberation Army entered Tibet in 1950 and Beijing formalised its control soon after. A 1959 uprising against Chinese rule led the 14th Dalai Lama to flee into exile in India, where he established what is now known as the Central Tibetan Administration. This history continues to shape the ongoing sovereignty dispute and the international debate over Tibet's political status.
From religious freedom and the Dalai Lama's succession to cross-border water disputes and the preservation of Tibetan culture, developments in and around Tibet continue to draw global attention. Follow ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½'s Tibet feed for continuously updated coverage from a wide range of sources.