Nepal said on Monday that it would immediately strike back against Maoist guerrillas, who killed 133 people, mostly army and police, over the weekend in one of their deadliest attacks in a six-year struggle to topple the monarchy. "The government has instructed all security agencies to launch immediate offensive and defensive operations against the Maoists," Communications and Information Minister Jayprakash Prasad Gupta said. In one raid alone this weekend, more than 100 people were killed in Mangalsen town, some 600 km (375 miles) west of the capital Kathmandu, the bloodiest single strike of the insurgency. Officials said troops had formed a ring around the area and were scouring surrounding mountains for the rebels.
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba was due on Monday to seek parliamentary approval for the extension for another three months of a state of emergency, declared after Maoists killed more than 200 people in a string of attacks in November. Bureau Report