Kathmandu, Dec 28: Suspected Maoist rebels set off a bomb in a hostel on the outskirts of the Nepali capital, wounding seven people, including five children, police said today. ''The injured have been admitted to a nearby hospital and the hostel building has been damaged by the impact of the blast,'' a police official told a news agency.

No one claimed responsibility for the blast, which occurred yesterday, but police blamed the Maoist rebels. The blast came ahead of a general strike called by the rebels on Sunday and Monday in Kathmandu as part of their campaign to overthrow the centuries-old Hindu monarchy and set up a one-party communist republic.
More than 7,200 people have been killed in the conflict since 1996. The violence has frightened away investors and tourists and crippled the impoverished nation's economy. Bureau Report