KATHMANDU, April 6: Five soldiers were killed in a landmine blast triggered by Maoist rebels in Nepal on Saturday raising the death toll in the Himalayan kingdom over the past 24 hours to 19, officials said.

Defence Ministry spokesman Tana Gautam said the landmine blast was at Kothiyaghat in Bardiya district, 600 km west of Kathmandu.

“Some soldiers injured in the blast have been brought to a hospital in Kathmandu by helicopter,” Gautam said.

Earlier, a ministry statement said soldiers had killed 14 guerrillas in separate assaults across the nation since Friday.

The rebels, who take their inspiration from the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong, are trying to topple the constitutional monarchy and set up a communist republic.

They say parliamentary democracy has failed to solve the country’s problems. More than 3,000 people have died in the rebellion since 1996.

The Defence Ministry statement said troops shot dead five Maoist insurgents on Friday in Bardiya.

Six more were killed in the nearby Jajarkot, Sallyan and Parbat districts of west Nepal, the centre of the rebellion. Another three were killed elsewhere.

Nepal ordered out its soldiers to crush the guerrillas last November after they walked out of a peace process and attacked several security posts.

In February, Nepal’s parliament extended the state of emergency until May, allowing soldiers unlimited powers to search and detain suspects as part of a crackdown against the rebels.

The rebellion, which started in a few remote, underdeveloped villages six years ago, has spread to all 75 districts of the kingdom, which is tucked between China and India.

The conflict has adversely affected tourism, Nepal’s key income earner. Investors have stayed away and business confidence has suffered in the country, one of the world’s poorest.

The government has vowed to crush the revolt ruling out fresh peace talks until the rebels surrender their arms.—Reuters