Nepal army bids to restore order after deadly protests oust PM

AFP | Kathmandu

Email : editor@newsofbahrain.com

Nepal’s army took back control of Kathmandu yesterday after the worst violence in two decades ousted the prime minister and left the parliament ablaze, enforcing a curfew and starting talks with protest leaders.

Soldiers patrolled the streets of the capital seeking to end the deadly protests this week, chaos during which police said more than 13,500 prisoners escaped jail countrywide.

Armoured personnel carriers rumbled past the carcasses of burnt vehicles and buildings on the largely quiet streets, with officers issuing orders via loudspeakers calling for calm during the political vacuum.

Nepali Army chief General Ashok Raj Sigdel held “consultations with related stakeholders and held a meeting with rep-resentatives of Gen Z,” Rajaram Basnet said, referring to the loose umbrella title of the young protesters, but without giving further details.

Shushila Karki, 73, a former Supreme Court chief justice who many see as a potential interim leader, said the dialogue between parties was critical. “Experts need to come together to figure out the way forward”, Karki told AFP. “The parliament still stands.”

Demonstrations began Monday in the capital against the government’s ban on social media and over corruption, driv-en by angry young protesters who dubbed themselves the “Gen Z” movement.

But they escalated into an outpouring of rage nationwide with government buildings set on fire after at least 19 people were killed in a deadly crackdown.

The rapid descent into chaos shocked many, and Nepal’s military warned against “activities that could lead the country into unrest and instability”.

Two policemen were killed on Tuesday, as well as the mass jailbreak, police spokesman Binod Ghimire said.