Inside Tibet, people mourn the unexplained death of Tulku Hungkar Dorje, a renowned abbot and educator.

–By Tenzin Pema and Tenzin Tenkyong for RFA Tibetan

Chinese officials have confirmed the death of an influential Tibetan Buddhist leader who went missing eight months ago shortly after he publicly called for the preservation of Tibetan language and culture, two sources told Radio Free Asia.

Tibetans inside Tibet took to social media platforms on Thursday to mourn the loss of Tulku Hungkar Dorje, 56. He was the 10th abbot of Lung Ngon Monastery in Gande County of Golog in Qinghai province. He was renowned as a philanthropist, educator and religious teacher.

“As learned leaders depart like this, one after another, we are left behind like a flock of sheep without a shepherd,” wrote one Tibetan netizen.

The sources, who live inside Tibet and spoke to RFA on condition of anonymity because of fears for their own safety, said that Chinese officials on Wednesday summoned seven monks from the Lung Ngon Monastery and informed them about Tulku Hungkar Dorje’s death. The officials provided no information abo...