KATHMANDU, Dec 21: Dozens of Maoists attacked offices of a prominent newspaper and magazine publisher and injured 12 staff on Sunday over critical coverage, an editor said.

Former rebel Maoists now govern Nepal after winning elections earlier this year, but they face criticism for the violent activities of their youth wing, the Young Communist League.

“While beating our staff they warned us not to write any anti-Maoist stories,” said Kiran Nepal, an editor with the Himal media group, which produces a weekly English-language newspaper and two news magazines.

About 50 Maoist-affiliated trade unionists and members of the feared youth wing stormed into the media group’s headquarters, attacked staff and vandalised property, Nepal said.

“This is a threat to press freedom because it has come at a time when the Maoists are running the government, and their own activists are attacking publication houses,” he said. No one was seriously hurt in the assault.

The United Nations human rights body in Nepal condemned the incident, which it described as “an attack against freedom of expression”. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the police to “complete its investigation as swiftly as possible so charges can be laid”. —AFP