Mass Arrests and Torture Reported After Mining Protests in Kham Zachukha

Tensions have peaked in Kashi village after residents confronted a gold-mining operation at the "Serkhok" site on November 5. Chinese authorities responded with a massive security crackdown, reportedly detaining approximately 80 Tibetans. Tibet Policy Institute (TPI) reports that detainees have faced severe abuse, including sleep deprivation, starvation, and physical torture leading to broken ribs and kidney damage. The region remains under a total communications blackout, with surveillance devices installed in private homes. TPI condemns these actions as systematic "cultural and environmental erasure," citing the forced signing of fabricated witness statements and ongoing enforced disappearances.