KATHMANDU (AFP) — Maoist demonstrators clashed with police in Kathmandu Monday as a general strike called by the former guerrillas' youth wing brought the Nepalese capital to a standstill.
Police said they fired tear gas to disperse stone-throwing youths during the one-day strike, which forced the closure of shops, schools and offices across the city and shut down all transport.
"Around 1,000 activists demonstrated in Balaju district on Monday afternoon. Brief clashes erupted after Maoist demonstrators threw stones at policemen," police officer Ashutosh Rana told AFP.
"About five rounds of tear gas were fired to bring the situation under control."
Protesters from the Maoists' Young Communist League (YCL) earlier burned tyres and set up road blocks in the city, and Rana said several vehicles had been vandalised after their owners defied the strike.
Monday's strike was the latest in a series of at times violent protests called by the Maoists since their leader, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, resigned as prime minister in May, plunging the Himalayan nation into chaos.
YCL leader Sagar told AFP the Maoists were demanding justice over the death of one of their leaders, Rajendra Phuyal, which he blamed on the youth wing of the rival UML party.
Tensions between the youth wings of rival Nepalese parties have risen since the government collapsed, and the United Nations has warned that increasing political violence could threaten the peace process here.
The YCL -- formed after a 2006 peace deal between the former rebel Maoists and the then government -- has faced persistent accusations of abductions, assault and extortion.
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