China has blocked the video-sharing network YouTube after Beijing denounced footage appearing to show security forces beating Tibetans in Lhasa last year as "a lie". The authorities have blocked the service on previous occasions and, more frequently, have prevented access to specific videos.
Google, which owns YouTube, confirmed that Beijing halted access to the site this week but said it did not know why. "We are looking into it and working to ensure that the service is restored as soon as possible," spokesman Scott Rubin said in an email to the Associated Press.