New Delhi, Delhi, India

The United Nations human rights office on Tuesday said that it had received reports alleging that a number of Chinese citizens had been detained or threatened ahead of the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown, news agency Reuters reported.

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Spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said that it also had received reports of "increased censorship" of the mention of the Tiananmen anniversary and was calling on Chinese authorities to enhance freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.

"We have made our concerns known to the Chinese government and we are working to also verify these reports that we have received," Shamdasani told Reuters Television.

Earlier today, China accused the United States of attacking its system and smearing its policies after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made comments "out of prejudice and arrogance" about the Tiananmen crackdown.

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The furious reaction came after Pompeo, the day before the 30th anniversary of the June 4, 1989 bloodshed, said on Monday that Washington had lost hope for human rights progress in China.