BEIJING, April 9 (Reuters) - Chinese police have detained a total of 953 suspects for involvement in riots in Tibet last month, the Himalayan region's governor said on Wednesday.

Qiangba Puncog, chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region government, told a news conference in Beijing that prosecutors had also issued arrest warrants for 403 of those detained, a step that generally leads to formal prosecution.

China has blamed Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, for monk-led protests that turned violent in Tibet's regional capital, Lhasa, last month. The unrest spilled over into nearby Chinese provinces that have large Tibetan populations.

The Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule, has denied the accusation. (Reporting by Benjamin Kang Lim; Writing by Guo Shipeng; Editing by Ken Wills)

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