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| Nepal PM tells Maoists to shove their cease-fire offer |
| 2002-05-10 |
| Nepal's government unleashed fresh attacks on a Maoist rebel stronghold in the west of the kingdom after flatly rejecting the guerrillas offer of a one-month ceasefire. The rebels, battered by an eight-day blitz that officials say has left at least 850 of the ultra-leftists dead, said they would observe a one-month ceasefire from May 15, expressing hope "the country can take a new political turn." Looks like they might have them on the ropes... But Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, speaking in New York late Thursday, said he had no faith in promises by the rebels, who in November broke a four-month ceasefire initiated by the premier and resumed their armed campaign with a new ferocity. "Unless they lay down arms and denounce violence, we can't trust them," Deuba, attending a UN special session on children, told CNN. "They are killing innocent people. They betrayed, they boycotted the peace talks six months ago." Ummm... Yep. That's a good reason not to trust them. This is actually a surprising turn in this ugly little war. For a long time it looked like the Maoists were getting the upper hand. Don't know if the government forces lucked into it, or if they're that good, but this looks like it's been a pretty effective campaign, even in a war notable for its high body counts. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |