The Associated Press reports the International Olympic Committee is considering scrapping the international leg of the Olympic torch relay as a result of a series of pro-Tibet protests. On Monday, officials in Paris were forced to extinguish the Olympic flame and carry it by bus when protesters tried to seize it. Wang Hui of the Beijing Organizing Committee criticized the ongoing protests.

Wang Hui: “For those few separatists who attempt to sabotage and destroy the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay, we express our strong condemnation. The Olympic flame belongs to the people around the world, so the behavior of a few separatists would not gain sympathy from people and will cause strong criticism and is doomed to fail.”

Khoury Souhail, the president of the International Olympic Committee in Lebanon said the Olympic games should be free from politics.

Khoury Souhail: “I think the problem of Tibet in China is an internal problem. I am against to manage the problem of politics with sport. Sport is our game, it is the game for the athletes, it’s a game for the organizers, it’s a game for Beijing, it’s a game for all the Olympic — or movement in the world. I think it’s better to keep this problem clear.”