KATHMANDU, Aug 16: Suspected Maoist rebels set off bombs on Monday at one of Nepal's top hotels, forcing it to close after it tried to defy a guerilla deadline for the kingdom's leading companies to shut down.

The blasts went off after sunset at Kathmandu's Soaltee Crowne Plaza, which is owned by King Gyanendra and had earlier rejected the Maoist threats which have shaken the Himalayan state's business community.

"We heard four deafening blasts one after another," said Ram Baidya, who lives near the 283-room hotel affiliated with Britain's Intercontinental Hotels Group. A hotel guard said the blasts caused no injuries and minimal damage.

"There were a couple of people on a motorcycle who threw the home made bombs onto the tennis court and then fled," the guard said. The Maoists, who want to overthrow the monarchy, are known for their attacks on infrastructure and private property in rural Nepal, although strikes inside the capital Kathmandu and on tourist sites have been rare.

The Soaltee Crowne Plaza, a favourite destination of well-heeled travellers to the land of Mount Everest, had deployed dozens of armed guards at its entrance after the Maoists issued the ultimatum earlier this month to the hotel and 23 other businesses to close by Tuesday.

But the hotel management said after the blast it would close "until further notice". "The hotel along with various trade associations and human rights organisations tried to engage the present government to address the matter (of the threats), which did not give any results," a statement said. -AFP