Former Tibet government head sentenced to life in prison

Key points

• Che Dalha, the former government head of the Tibet ​Autonomous Region, has been sentenced to life in prison over corruption, China's official Xinhua news agency ​reported on Friday (June 5, 2026).
• Che Dalha, or ⁠Qizhala, 67 and of Tibetan ethnicity, illegally took in more than 158 million yuan ($23.35 million) from 1999 to 2025 while he worked in the country's southwestern border regions of Tibet and Yunnan, as well as during postings in Beijing, ⁠a court in the southwestern Chinese ⁠city of Chongqing found.
• He had served as the Communist Party chief of Tibet's capital, Lhasa, and then as chair ​of the Tibet Autonomous Region's government as the region's second-highest ranking official.
• The top official in Tibet is the regional Communist Party chief.
• China's anti-graft watchdog announced a probe into Mr. Che Dalha in January 2025. ​He was formally removed from public office and expelled from the party six ⁠months...