KATHMANDU, Oct 27: At least 16 Maoist rebels were killed in a series of gunbattles in Nepal, officials said on Sunday, as the government steps up efforts to crush a rebellion that has killed thousands and damaged the economy.

Police said suspected Maoist guerrillas set off five bombs in and around the capital in which three people were injured by flying glass.

Kathmandu has been rocked by a series of blasts in October.

Nine guerrillas were killed on Sunday in a remote village in Nawalparasi, 150 km west of Kathmandu, in a joint operation by police and the army, defence ministry spokesman Bhupendra Prasad Poudel said.

Security forces surrounded the village after receiving information guerrillas were hiding there.—Reuters