Beijing - More than one year after anti-Chinese protests rocked the Tibetan capital Lhasa, Chinese authorities sentenced three Tibetans to death for arson, the official Xinhua news agency said Tuesday.

Two others were each sentenced to 10 years in prison by a municipal court in Lhasa for involvement in fires that killed six people in March 2008.

The death sentences were suspended for two years, after which it is possible for them to be converted into life-in-prison sentences.

The main defendant, identified as Penkyi, was charged with setting fire to two clothing stores during the severe riots in Lhasa on March 14, 2008, in which one shop owner was killed, the Tibet Daily reported.

Afterwards, he and the two other defendants set fire to another fabrics store. Five shop assistants aged from 17 to 23 were killed in that fire.

The court was lenient with the two other defendants because they turned themselves in.

On April 8, another four Tibetans were handed death sentences for arson during the riots, with two of them also suspended for two years.

Protests against Chinese rule in Tibet escalated on April 14, 2008 in Lhasa and spread to other areas where Tibetans live. (dpa)