Olympics head: IOC won't 'cross the line' and push China on Tibet

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
The International Olympic Committee will not intervene to pressure China on Tibet or other political issues in the countdown to the Beijing Games. IOC president Jacques Rogge reiterated that stance Friday, saying it was not up to the Olympic body to get involved in the host country's political affairs. "This is the line we do not have to cross," he said at the close of a two-day IOC executive board meeting in the Chinese capital. China's recent crackdown in Tibet has fueled protests that have disrupted the global torch relay for the Beijing Games. Rogge has expressed hope for a peaceful resolution of the turmoil in the Himalayan region. But he said Thursday he would not press China to open talks on Tibet, calling that a "political matter in which the IOC cannot enter."