Katmandu: Nepal’s prime minister has appealed for calm after clashes erupted between young activists and loyalists of the former ruling party that was overthrown in a deadly uprising in September.
Police said on Thursday calm had returned to Simara, a town in Nepal’s southern Bara district some 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Katmandu, a day after clashes between rival protesters.
At least 76 people were killed during demonstrations on September 8 and 9 that were triggered by anger over a brief government ban on social media and led by protesters under the loose “Gen Z” umbrella title.
Gen Z members and supporters of ousted former prime minister KP Sharma Oli’s Communist Party of Nepal — Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) both held rallies in Simara on Wednesday.
Scuffles broke out, some close to the airport, that prompted authorities to impose a curfew.
“The situation is normal,” Nepal police spokesman Abi Narayan Kafle told AFP on Thursday. “No one was severely injured.”
Sushila Karki, the former chief justice who was appointed interim prime minister after the September uprising, called on all parties to “refrain from unwanted political provocation,” and to trust the democratic process ahead of elections set for March 5, 2026.
“I have directed the Home Administration and security agencies to work with utmost restraint and preparation to maintain peace and order,” Karki said in a statement issued late on Wednesday.
She said she wanted to “ensure the safe movement of leaders of all political parties, and create a fair and fear-free environment for the elections.”
Karki also held a meeting on Wednesday with representatives of more than 110 parties.
“We want this country to be in the hands of a new generation and to be managed by people with vision,” she told the meeting.
The September demonstrations were triggered by the former government’s social media ban but anger ran much deeper after years of economic stagnation and entrenched corruption that primed the country of 30 million people for upheaval.
Parliament, courts and government offices were torched before four-time premier Oli, 73, was ousted.
Karki, also 73, was appointed interim prime minister to lead the Himalayan nation to the polls.
Nepal PM calls for calm after latest clashes
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Nepal PM calls for calm after latest clashes
- At least 76 people were killed during demonstrations on September 8 and 9 that were triggered by anger over a brief government ban on social media and led by protesters under the loose “Gen Z” umbrella title
Ukraine president to meet European allies after Trump criticism
- Talks between Ukrainian and US officials in Miami ended on Saturday with no apparent breakthrough
- President Donald Trump accuses Ukrainian leader of not reading the US proposal to end the war with Russia
LONDON: Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky was due to meet with European allies in London on Monday, after President Donald Trump accused him of not reading the US proposal to end the war with Russia.
It comes after days of talks between Ukrainian and US officials in Miami ended on Saturday with no apparent breakthrough, with Zelensky committing to further negotiations.
The Ukrainian president will be received in London by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, along with the German chancellor and French president to discuss the negotiations.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is meanwhile expected in Washington on Monday, where she will meet her American counterpart Marco Rubio.
“The UK and US will reaffirm their commitment to reaching a peace deal in Ukraine,” the Foreign Office in London said, announcing Cooper’s visit.
Moscow has meanwhile continued to strike its neighbor, wounding at least nine people overnight Sunday to Monday, according to Ukrainian officials.
‘Disappointed’
Zelensky said he joined his negotiators for a “very substantive and constructive” call with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during the Miami negotiations.
“Ukraine is committed to continuing to work honestly with the American side to bring about real peace,” Zelensky said on Telegram, adding that the parties agreed “on the next steps and the format of the talks with America.”
But Trump criticized his Ukrainian counterpart on Sunday, telling reporters “I have to say that I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelensky hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago.”
Witkoff and Kushner had met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin last week, with Moscow rejecting parts of the US proposal.
French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of Monday’s talks slammed what he called Russia’s “escalatory path.”
“We will continue these efforts with the Americans to provide Ukraine with security guarantees, without which no robust and lasting peace will be possible,” Macron wrote on X.
He added: “We must continue to exert pressure on Russia to compel it to choose peace.”
Hot and cold
Washington’s initial plan to bring an end to the almost four-year war involved Ukraine surrendering land that Russia has not been able to win on the battlefield in return for security promises that fall short of Kyiv’s aspirations to join NATO.
But the nature of the security guarantees that Ukraine could get has so far been shrouded in uncertainty, beyond an initial plan saying that jets to defend Kyiv could be based in Poland.
Trump has blown hot and cold on Ukraine since returning to office in January, initially embracing Putin and chastising Zelensky for not being grateful for US support.
But he has also grown frustrated that his efforts to persuade Putin to end the war, including a summit in Alaska, have failed to produce results and he recently slapped sanctions on Russian oil firms.
