Nepal's Maoists hand over weapons

Kathmandu, Sep 2(ANI): Nepal's former Maoist rebels have begun handing over their weapons to a multi-party committee.

The move represents a major step towards completion of the peace process and comes after the recent swearing in ceremony of Maoist Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai.

The Maoists have been under huge pressure to surrender their arms since the end of a decade-long war in 2006, which has left over 15,000 dead.

Maoist commander based in seven cantonments around the country have reportedly handed over their weapons to special committee' representatives' who are overseeing their management, integration and rehabilitation, the BBC reports.

"We handed over the key of the weapons' container to a representative of the special committee," Chulachuli cantonment commander Ram Babu Thapa said.

Maoist spokesperson Dinanath Sharma said the relinquishing of arms now brings ex- combatants and their weapons under the committee's command.

"Not just the keys, we decided to hand over the house itself to the special committee. It's according to the decisions taken by our party," he said.

The move, which has been cautiously welcomed by opposition parties, could lead to the integration of 19000 Maoist ex- combatants into Nepal's security forces or their rehabilitation into society.(ANI)