Armed police in Lhasa have rescued more than 580 people, including three Japanese tourists, from banks, supermarkets, schools and hospitals that were set alight by violent saboteurs, sources with the Tibet Autonomous Region government said on Saturday.

More than 160 blazing spots, including forty major fires, were reported after an outbreak of violent activities that wracked the capital city of Tibet Friday.

At least 10 people have been confirmed dead in the riot, the regional government said.

No casualties have been reported among foreigners, an official with the foreign affairs office of the regional government said.

"We have not received any report that foreigners suffered injuries or death in the beating, smashing, looting and burning on Friday," the official said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 15, 2008)