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Protests in Nepal

Protesters seize Nepalese parliament building, set it on fire — authorities

Earlier, it was reported that the Supreme Court, as well as the residences of Nepal’s president, prime minister, government officials and other politicians were set ablaze

© REUTERS/ Adnan Abidi

NEW DELHI, September 9. /TASS/. Protesters seized the Nepalese parliament building in Kathmandu and set it on fire, parliament speaker Ekram Giri said.

"Hundreds of people seized the parliament and set the main building on fire," the AFP news agency quoted him as saying.

Earlier, it was reported that the Supreme Court, as well as the residences of Nepal’s president, prime minister, government officials and other politicians were set ablaze.

On September 4, the Nepalese government restricted Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp (social media sites banned in Russia since they are owned by Meta corporation classified as extremist by the Russian authorities) as well as other social networks that were not registered with the Communication and Information Technology Ministry in a timely manner. On September 8, mass protests involving thousands of demonstrators began in Kathmandu and several other major cities in Nepal. The protesters opposed the government's measures. The majority of demonstrators were students and activists from the Gen Z youth movement. The government sent servicemen to the capital to maintain order and imposed an indefinite curfew. A total of 19 people died, and over 500 were injured. The authorities lifted all restrictions on September 9 amid continued protests.

On Tuesday, Nepalese Prime Minister Sharma Oli resigned. Although the protests had no official leaders, Hami Nepal Chairman Sudhan Gurung was their main instigator. The organization promotes youth participation in social reform and opposes Internet censorship and corruption.

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