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# Rebel attacks, protests hit Nepal ### Police officers arrive to secure a busy market area in Kathmandu Thursday. ### YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS Nepal Police Riots Government or Create Your Own Manage Alerts | What Is This? KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) -- Soldiers scoured southwestern Nepal on Friday for communist rebels who attacked security bases, killing 13 people and taking 28 hostage, while troops patrolled the capital to thwart planned anti-government protests. Hundreds of soldiers have been transported to the area near Malangawa, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Kathmandu, where Maoist rebels bombed government buildings and attacked security bases Wednesday night. Six policemen, five rebels and two civilians were killed in the attack, the Home Ministry said. The rebels also took 28 hostages, police said. "We have not been able to trace the official and policemen missing but a search is under way," said police official Rajan Limbu, adding that government troops had regained control of the area. Security officials, meanwhile, said troops would remain alert on Friday, the second day of a four-day general strike called by Nepal's seven opposition political parties to protest King Gyanendra's direct rule since last year. The strike is backed by the communist rebels, who have fought for a decade to oust the king. In the Kathmandu, officials said they would not allow any protests against the government. More than 170 activists who defied a ban on rallies in Kathmandu on Thursday were arrested by policemen who used tear gas and batons to disperse the crowd. Communist party leader Khadga Prasad Oli said protests would continue Friday morning. The U.S. State Department reiterated the U.S. government's condemnation of the ruling government of Nepal, saying that actions of King Gyanendra's absolute monarchy violates the civil rights of Nepalese citizens. "We're seriously concerned about the government's ongoing curbs on civil liberties and human rights, which has led to serious unrest in Nepal," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. "The arrests and harassment of pro-democracy activists violate their fundamental civil rights," McCormack said. "The United States calls on the Government of Nepal to release these and other detained activists who have been held for voicing their opposition to autocratic rule in Nepal." The king argues he was forced to seize power in February last year because of the growing insurgency, which has killed some 13,000 people since 1996. He has been under international pressure to restore democracy. Soon after taking power, the king imposed a state of emergency and placed restrictions on the media. Although the emergency decree was lifted, the government has continued to crack down on opposition politicians and activists. The government argues that the politicians' agreement with the Maoists gives legitimacy to the rebels' violent methods, but the political parties say it is the only hope to end the insurgency. Working with the Maoists "is a gamble," said Ram Sharan Mahat of the Nepali Congress, the largest opposition party. ### Promise to give up arms "But you have to recognize that the Maoists are a political force and no political solution will come without bringing them on board," he said. "There might be many 'ifs' and 'buts', but we want to give them an honorable political exit (from violence)." Information Minister Shrish Shumshere Rana dismissed the claim. "We are not quite convinced that the agreement is going to stop terrorism, in fact it will encourage it," Rana said in an interview. "It is just a convenient rug under which terror hides." Since allying with the political parties, the militants have promised to end human rights abuses, and no longer insist on the immediate creation of a communist state. The alliance wants an elected constituent assembly to decide on a future political structure. The militants say they support multiparty rule and have promised to give up their arms after a new constitution is written. But in the interim, they've refused to renounce violence -- in fact, they have stepped up attacks on government forces. Human rights groups and diplomats say the rebels also still regularly commit rights violations and use child soldiers. Critics of the alliance fear the rebels are simply using the opposition. If the king fell, "the Maoists would be armed; the parties would be unarmed," U.S. Ambassador James Moriarty said in a speech earlier this year. "This stark scenario leaves the parties, and the people, defenseless against ideological 'partners' long used to settling arguments with a gun." Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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