China has commuted the death sentenced imposed on a Tibetan monk convicted of involvement in a series of bombings in 2002.
The official Xinhua news agency reports that Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche will instead serve a life term for the bombings, which killed one person in an ethnic Tibetan area of southwestern China.
The monk's case had attracted international attention. The U.S. Senate and European Parliament joined human rights organizations in calling for the monk's release.
In a related development, an international rights group says a monk who worked closely with Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche was released from a Chinese prison earlier this month. Human Rights Watch says that after nearly three years in custody Tashi Phuntsog is a broken man, no longer able to walk or speak clearly.