Beijing, Aug. 8: China today opened its gates to culture, life and the world of sports at a hugely colourful and gala extravaganza of 24th Olympics inaugration here on Friday evening.

About 15,000 artists participated in the grand inaugural ceremony, which left spectators and dignitaries awestruck and mesmerized.

The 17-day Beijing Olympics will witness sportspersons from 205 nations competing for glory and medals. About 302 Gold Medals are up for grabs at the event.

Distinguished personalities representing 80 countries have attended the ceremony.

New Delhi, August 8 : Police detain hundreds of angry Tibetan refugees attempting to storm Chinese embassy in New Delhi.

Police detained hundreds of angry Tibetan refugees attempting to storm Chinese embassy in New Delhi on Friday, coinciding their protest with the opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing.

Scores of Tibetans shouting anti-China slogans braved heavy rains to protest against the Olympics being staged by China.

London, August 8 : A new research has suggested that the fallout from Chinese industrial pollution could actually be reducing the country’s contribution to climate change from at least one greenhouse gas – methane.

According to a report in New Scientist, the research, conducted by a British team, added sulphate to laboratory rice paddies in an effort to mimic the effect of acid rain on Asia’s most important food crop.

“This equivalent of typical acid rain reduced methane emissions from flooded paddies by up to 25 per cent,” said Vincent Gauci of the Open University in Milton Keynes in the UK.

Beijing - Chinese President Hu Jintao met his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, Friday amid a flurry of diplomatic activity before they and about 80 other heads of state attended the opening of the 2008 Olympics.

Before he left for China, Sarkozy pledged not to meet the Dalai Lama during the Tibetan spiritual leader's visit to France next week.

State media did not say if Hu and Sarkozy discussed Tibet and gave no other details of the talks between the two presidents.

Beijing - Chinese President Hu Jintao on Friday met two leading Taiwanese politicians in the latest sign of improving diplomatic ties across the Taiwan Strait.

Hu met separately with Lien Chan, the honorary chairman of Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang (KMT or Nationalist Party), and People First Party Chairman James Soong, both of whom were scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing later on Friday.

State media gave no details of any talks between Hu and Lien and Soong, and state media portrayed the meetings as "party to party" rather than diplomatic events.

Beijing - A little-known Islamic group has issued a new terrorist threat against the Beijing Olympics, US intelligence analysts said Friday.

The Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) issued the threat Wednesday in a video posted on the internet, urging Muslims "not to attend the games or be within the vicinity," the SITE Intelligence Group reported on its website.

The six-minute video "Call to the Global Muslim Ummah" had a production date of August 1 and similar graphics to a previous video purporting to be from the same group, SITE said.