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Nepal is quickly earning a reputation as least desirable vacation spot, with violent protests beginning to spiral out of control. Street clashes continued in the Kathmandu Valley and the towns of Nijgarh and Gongabu on Monday as soldiers fired on protesters with bullets and teargas shells. At least four people have been killed and dozens injured during nearly two weeks of protests against the monarchy. King Gyanendra is close to re-declaring a state of emergency, a move that likely would only prolong the current crisis.
The situation in Nepal has been deteriorating gradually since King Gyanendra dissolved the parliament in February 2005 -- saying the elected government had not done enough to quell the Maoist insurgency. As a result, the seven-party alliance (SPA) of democratic political parties formed an unusual alliance with the country's rebel Maoist movement in a united effort to bring down the monarchy.
In an attempt to split the SPA-Maoist alliance (SPAM), the king announced in a Hindu New Year address April 13 that he would call national elections and consult with the country's political parties. The promise of elections was viewed as a complete farce, and the opposition's calls to replace the monarchy with a constitutional assembly only grew louder.
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