Fresh discord in Nepal as rebels call strike
Students and labour groups backed by Nepal's Maoist rebels blocked traffic in the capital yesterday in a strike called to protest against the appointment of ambassadors by the interim government without consulting them.
The day-long strike, the first by the rebel groups since they began a peace process with the government in May, pointed to fresh strains in their uneasy relationship.
The rebels have called for transport, businesses, schools and factories to shut down in Kathmandu.
Early morning traffic in the hill-ringed city was disrupted by protesters, some of whom tied a rope across a road, burned tyres and set up other roadblocks to stop vehicles.
The Maoists and the government last month signed a landmark peace deal declaring an end to the decade-old anti-monarchy rebellion that has killed more than 13,000 people.
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