Abducted British official a Brigadier General (Nepal)

Nepal News ^ | Oct.21, 2003

[Int]

Abducted British official a Brigadier General

A British official abducted by the Maoists from Baglung on Monday was a senior official named John Paul, a Brigadier General of the British army, published reports said Tuesday.

The Kathmandu-based British embassy Monday confirmed the abduction of the official on Monday.

Along with Paul, four more officials have gone missing. Of them, three were British Gurkha officials. They have been identified as Nar Bahadur Thapa, Balkrishna Gurung and Karna Bahadur Kaucha. The name of the fifth abducted official was not known.

The actual place where the abduction took place was Lekhani village in Baglung, the reports said.

This is the first time that a foreign national has been abducted by the Maoist rebels since they began "people's war" eights years ago. The Defense Ministry has not confirmed or denied the abductions, so far.

"A small team of the British Gurkhas who were recruiting have been out of touch from 8 in the evening on Sunday," a duty officer at the British Embassy had told Nepalnews on Monday. Brigadier General Paul was observing the recruitment. nepanews.com mr Oct 21

[JerseyHighlander]

Those Maoists have hoisted their own petard on this one. Looks liek the Ghurka training budget is getting redirected. The downside, we'll never know what happened, unlesss it's turned into a movie script.

[samtheman]

Maoists. Now there's a forward-looking group. What's their campaign slogan, "equal starvation for all"?

[blam]

UK officer 'Safe' In Nepal

[archy]

Ayo gorkhali! Gurkha ping list ping!

[archy]

Those Maoists have hoisted their own petard on this one. Looks liek the Ghurka training budget is getting redirected. The downside, we'll never know what happened, unlesss it's turned into a movie script.

We've just approved a Foreign Military Aid Program shipment of some 20,000 M16A2 rifles to Nepal. They'll likely be put to good use very shortly.

-archy-/-

[archy]

Sun Oct 19,11:37 AM ET

A Nepalese army soldier (L) stands guard as his colleagues inspect the body of Anil Chaudhary a former employee of the Carpet and Wool Development Board at Dhumbarahi in Kathmandu, 14 October 2003. Chaudhary was shot dead, at point blank range while walking in the street at Dhumbarahi locality on the outskirts of the capital, a police spokesman said. Violence has surged in Nepal since an eight-day ceasefire called by the Maoists ended on 09 October.

(AFP/File/Devendra M Singh)

[archy]

Maoists. Now there's a forward-looking group. What's their campaign slogan, "equal starvation for all"?

You might expect them to be carrying Kalishnikovs.

[Travis McGee]

These are not soft people on either side, are they? Could this war surpass the Shining Path/FARC S. American tactics in cruelty and brutality? Has it already? What are the chances of a Maoist victory, or a of the Maoists being decisively crushed?

[archy]

These are not soft people on either side, are they?

Oh no; not at all. Neither is either side poorly led or supplied, weak in resolve, nor short of external support from those using the Nepalese factions as proxies. Could this war surpass the Shining Path/FARC S. American tactics in cruelty and brutality? Has it already?

It's probably at least equal to it in intensity, and that's a good comparison, since there's a decidedly Maoist bent to the Peruvianos' Sendero Luminoso. There are certainly comparisons in terrain as well, so long as you don't try to stretch the comparison too far.

What are the chances of a Maoist victory, or a of the Maoists being decisively crushed?

Over the short haul, probably not good for either. Over a longer period, it might eventually go either way, depending on whether the Nepalese Government institutes some reforms without appearing to do so as concessions out of weakness and institutes some innovations sorely needed by the military, or just continues to maintain a *business-as-usual* attitude.

It's probably worth keeping an eyec on developments on neighboring Bhutan as well.

Care to be added to the *Kukri* Nepal/Gurkha news ping list?

-archy-/-

[Hazzardgate]

Ghurka's OVVN

[Travis McGee]

I can't get on any more lists! I'm trying to write more and freep less as it is. But thanks!

Matt

[swarthyguy]

Did the maosits overreach and realise their mistake. Or was the original abduction story wrong and theirs was a mission to the maoists. The carnage hasn't stopped lately; sporadic but ongoing.