A man has self-immolated in protest against China's presence in Tibet while calling for the return of the Dalai Lama, a rights group said Saturday, the first Tibetan to set themselves on fire since March. Horrific video footage online showed the man, aged in his thirties and named by The International Campaign for Tibet as Tashi Rabten, walking down the road in northwest China's Maqu region with his entire body engulfed in flames while a passerby recited prayers.
According to the Tibetan government in exile based in India, Rabten is the 145th Tibetan to self-immolate since 2009. Local authorities, who collected his charred remains, could not be reached for comment. Rabten's wife, two of his children and several other family members were placed in detention by local police after they went to claim the body, according to rights group Free Tibet.