KATHMANDU, May 18: At least 50 Maoists and nine soldiers died in a battle in southeastern Nepal, state media reported on Wednesday, in the latest heavy outbreak of fighting since King Gyanendra seized power in February. The battle, in which troops launched ground and air attacks, also marked the biggest reported loss of life for security forces since the king took control in what he said was a move to end the increasingly deadly revolt.

Bodies of Maoist fighters littered the scene of Monday’s clash in and around Udayapur district, 280kms southeast of Kathmandu. “At least 50 Maoists and nine security persons were killed in a clash in the Taple area of Udayapur district,” the Nepali-language Gorkhapatra newspaper said, adding that more than 100 rebels and 17 soldiers were injured.

The clash lasted for several hours, according to state media, but was not reported until Wednesday due to the area’s remote location and poor communications. “Eight rebel bodies were found scattered at the battle site while over 40 bodies were recovered from the Gobari area adjoining the site,” said state-run Radio Nepal.

There was no official comment available from the Maoists, who have been fighting since 1996 to install a communist republic, but a source close to the rebels said only six guerrillas were killed in the fighting, including their eastern area commander.

Six Maoists were shot dead and a student injured on Tuesday in Chitwan district, 170 kilometres southwest of Kathmandu, when rebels attacked security forces guarding a college examination centre, state media said.

The conflict in the impoverished kingdom has cost over 11,000 lives since the Maoists took up arms nine years ago. Reports of the clashes could not be independently verified due to difficulty in reaching the locations.

In the most recent major fighting May 9, hundreds of Maoists stormed two army bases in southern Nepal, sparking fierce firefights in which at least 32 rebels and three security men were killed, the army said.

Those clashes erupted as US Assistant Secretary of State, Christina Rocca, visited the Himalayan nation to press King Gyanendra to restore democracy. The biggest reported loss of life since the king’s takeover was last month when the army said nearly 150 rebels were killed in an attack on an army base that left three members of the security forces dead.

In other violence, rebels attacked a state-run television station 250 kilometres southwest of Kathmandu late Tuesday, bombing a transmission tower and destroying equipment, but injuring no one.

Maoists frequently attack state-owned targets such as hydroelectric plants, bridges, government offices and communications facilities as part of their drive to damage the infrastructure.

India last week resumed some military shipments to Nepal after Gyanendra lifted emergency rule late last month. But hundreds of political leaders, party activists, human rights workers and others remain in detention, including former premier Sher Bahadur Deuba, fired by the king February 1 and now being held on charges of corruption.

Prosecutors are demanding a 10-year prison term for Deuba who says he is a victim of a “vendetta” against politicians opposed to the king’s takeover. —AFP