Early events •
13 February 1996: Initiation of "the people's war" by the
Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist).
2001 •
January: The government creates the
Armed Police Force, a paramilitary force to fight the insurgents. •
28 May:
Chairman Prachanda gives an interview with the Communist journal
A World to Win. •
1 June:
King Birendra and most of the royal family were killed in the
Nepalese royal massacre. Crown Prince Dipendra was accused of the massacre by the Incident Inquiry Committee consisting of Chief Justice
Keshav Prasad Upadhaya, and the speaker of the House of Representatives,
Taranath Ranabhat. Dipendra, supposedly comatose after a
suicide attempt, is crowned king, according to tradition. He supposedly died on 4 June 2001.
Gyanendra is then crowned King. •
3 August: The first round of peace talks begin. •
23 November: Peace talks collapse when the Maoists withdraw and launch a ferocious attack on Police and Army posts in 42 districts. •
26 November: The government of
Sher Bahadur Deuba declares a nationwide State of Emergency and deploys the
Nepal Army. • US State Department declares Maoist political party as a terrorist organization. The
United States Congress approves US$12 million to train
Royal Nepal Army officers and supply 5,000
M16 rifles.
2002 •
17 March: Security Forces (Royal Nepal Army Soldiers and police) conducted a surprise raid on a Maoist training center in the jungles near Gumchal in the western district of Rolpa. The surprise attack killed 62 Maoists. A separate incident in western districts killed six Maoists. Bringing the number to 68. •
May: Peace talks collapse. •
17 August: Nepali military and police forces kill 39 Maoist rebels in the
Ramechhap district of central Nepal during an offensive launched jointly by the Army, Police, and Air Force of Nepal. 7 soldiers of the Nepali Army and 5 Constables of the Armed Police are also killed in the operation. •
13 October: At least 42 Police Recruits and 9 Maoists are killed when an estimated 3,000 Maoists attempt to storm a Police Training Center in Bhaluwang. "'The rebels had snapped telephone cables, set up roadblocks by felling trees or blowing up highway bridges to prevent reinforcements from coming,' a witness, Krishna Adhikary, told Reuters." •
27 October: " Colonel Adrian Griffith and six Nepali nationals were freed last week 42 hours after being taken captive in
Baglung, west of Kathmandu, while on a drive to recruit young Gurkha soldiers to serve in the British army." Party chief Prachanda said, "We are sorry for the incident that took place against the policy of the party." •
11 November: The
Ministry of Defence accuses the Maoists of abducting twenty-nine 9th- and 10th-grade students from Riva Secondary School in
Mugu District, western Nepal during the previous week. •
15 November: Four police officers, including Kamalapati Pant (Nepal Police Force), were shot dead from behind on a tea shop by two armed Maoist rebels who approached in a motorcycle and fled away immediately, in
Nepalgunj. •
19 November: According to a Nepal army official, four people were caught at the Chinese Khasa border point, 114 kilometers northeast of Kathmandu, smuggling weapons from
Tibet into Nepal. The official named Hirala Lal Shrestha and Gyaljen Sherpa and said they were taken for interrogation in the Tibetan town of
Shigatse.
2004 •
5 February: An Army raid is carried out by the
Bhairavnath Battalion on a village in Bhimad,
Makwanpur district. Reports emerge that 14 suspected Maoist rebels and two civilians were executed after being captured.
Amnesty International later wrote a letter to Prime Minister
Surya Bahadur Thapa and Brigadier-General Nilendra Aryal, Head of the Royal Nepal Army (RNA) human rights cell, demanding an immediate inquiry. •
10 February: Two central committee members of the CPN-M, Matrika Yadav and Suresh Paswan, are reported to have been handed over by India to Nepal. They were reportedly arrested in
Lucknow after Nepal provided information. •
13 February: Ganesh Chilwal leads an anti-Maoist protest on this day, the eighth anniversary of the commencement of the revolution. •
15 February: Ganesh Chilwal is shot dead in his Kathmandu office by two suspected Maoists. •
15 and 16 February: State radio reports that 13 Maoist rebels were killed in seven separate small clashes with security forces across the country. •
2 April: The largest rallies since 1990 begin in Kathmandu. They are variously labelled "pro-democracy" and "anti-monarchy." •
3 April: More than 12 trucks are burnt while waiting at a western Nepal border post to pick up petrol from India. India condemns the attacks and vows to fight terrorism. •
4 April: "Some 150 demonstrators were struck during a police
baton charge" during demonstrations in Kathmandu •
4 April: "Hundreds of Maoist rebels" attack a Police outpost in Yadukuwa, Jadukhola. 13 policemen are killed, 7 wounded, and 35 are listed as missing. 8–9 Maoists are also killed. "Witnesses said more than 500 rebels attacked the Police post and began firing Assault Rifles and
RPG-7 rockets. at around 9 pm (1515 GMT) on Sunday night. The fighting lasted two to three hours." Other reports state 400 rebels. •
4 April: In the west of the country three Indian traders are shot and injured and have their vehicles burned. •
5 April: In the morning, 3 soldiers are killed and 7 injured by a CPN(M) landmine activated by their vehicle at Dhalkhola, 50 km east of Kathmandu. •
24 June: The nephew of former Prime Minister
Surya Bahadur Thapa is hacked to death by Maoist insurgents in
Dhankuta district. •
16 August: The Soaltee Hotel, a popular luxury hotel in Kathmandu, is bombed, after refusing a demand from the Maoists that the hotel be closed. •
18 August: A bomb explodes in a marketplace in southern Nepal. The blast kills a 12-year-old boy and wounds six others, including three policemen. In addition, Maoist rebels, demanding the release of captured guerrillas, stop all road traffic near Kathmandu by threatening to attack vehicles. Some Nepal businesses are shut down because of threats. •
10 September: A bomb explodes at the
United States Information Service office in Kathmandu. •
13 September:
U.S. Peace Corps suspends operations and non-essential U.S. Embassy personnel are evacuated from Nepal. •
9 November: 36 people were injured when suspected Maoist rebels exploded a powerful bomb at an under-construction government office complex, the Karmachari Sanchaya Kosh Office Complex in the heart of Nepalese capital Kathmandu Tuesday. •
11 November: Maoists kill
NID Deputy Superintendent of Police Hemraj Regmi in front of his office residence in
Butwal-6 in Rupandehi district. •
15 December: Twenty government security personnel are killed in the western district of
Arghakhanchi when the Maoists mount a surprise attack. •
16 December: Sixteen Maoist rebels are killed in clashes with Nepali security forces in the western district of
Dailekh. •
23 December: Maoist forces launch blockade of Kathmandu. •
26 December: Over 15,000 hold peace rally in Kathmandu.
2005 •
2 January: Nepali media reports two children being killed in
Dailekh district by a Maoist bomb. •
4 January: Three government security personnel and between two and twenty-four Maoist rebels reported killed in fighting. •
8 January: Maoists detain and later release 300 passengers from six buses that defy their blockade of Kathmandu. •
10 January: Prime Minister Deuba said he would increase defense spending to fight the Maoists unless they come forward for talks with the government. •
11 January: Protests and blockades over the government fuel price increases of between 10% and 25%. •
15 January: Maoists allegedly detain 14 Indian Gurkhas from Chuha village in
Kailali. •
29 January: Government leader in the Lamjung district had been abducted and murdered with a gunshot to the head. •
1 February: King Gyanendra dissolves the Deuba government and bans all news reports. The army begins arresting senior political leaders, journalists, trade unionists, human rights activists and civil society leaders. All telephone and internet connections are cut. •
7 April: Maoists
attack an army base in Khara, Rukum suffering 300 losses. •
6 June:
Badarmude bus explosion: Some 38 civilians are killed and over 70 injured after a packed passenger bus runs over a rebel landmine in
Chitwan district. •
9 August: Maoist rebels kill 40 security men in midwestern Nepal. •
3 September: The Maoists declare a three-month unilateral ceasefire to woo opposition political parties. •
October: Chunbang Central Committee meeting in Rolpa decides to join hands with the political parties against the king •
19 November: After negotiations, the Maoist rebels agree to work with opposition politicians in a common front against the rule of King Gyanendra.
2006 •
2 January: Rebels decide not to extend a four-month ceasefire saying that the government had broken the ceasefire with numerous attacks on Maoist villages. •
14 January: Maoists launch coordinated attacks on five military and paramilitary targets in the
Kathmandu valley, the first demonstration of their ability to organize violence within the Valley, prompting curfews at night for the next several days. •
14 March: Nepali rebels extend road blockade; nationwide strike called for
3 April. •
5 April:
General strike begins with Maoist forces promising to refrain from violence. •
6 April 7: Protesters clash with police, hundreds arrested, dozens injured. •
8 April: A
curfew is imposed in Kathmandu from 10 pm to 9 am The king orders protesters violating the curfew to be "shot on sight." •
9 April: General strike scheduled to end. Government extends curfew,
BBC reports. Three dead in two days of unrest, as thousands of demonstrators defy curfews. •
26 April: The Maoists start to unblock streets and roads, but put forth some conditions. •
27 April: Maoist insurgents, responding to a demand by the newly appointed prime minister
Girija Prasad Koirala, announce a unilateral three-month truce after
weeks of pro-democracy protests in Kathmandu, and encourage the formation of a new
constituent assembly to rewrite the nation's constitution. •
3 May: Nepal's new cabinet declares a ceasefire. This was not taken very seriously. The cabinet also announces that the Maoist rebels will no longer be considered a terrorist group. Rebels are also encouraged to open peace talks. •
21 November: Peace talks end with the signing of the
Comprehensive Peace Accord between Prime Minister Koirala and Maoist leader Prachanda. The deal allows the Maoists to take part in government, and places their weapons under UN monitoring. • ==Aftermath==