Our tax dollars at work

Was going to write "your," but I'm as much a part of this as anyone. From ZNet, The US and Nepal:

Tucked into the upper stories of the Himalayas, Nepal hardy seems ground zero for the Bush Administration's next crusade against "terrorism," but an aggressive American ambassador, a strategic locale, and a flood of U.S. weaponry threatens to turn the tiny country of 25 million into a counter insurgency bloodbath.

More than 8,000 Nepalese have died since a civil war broke out in 1996, and the death rate has sharply increased with the arrival of almost 8,400 American M-16 submachine guns, accompanied by U.S. advisors, high tech night fighting equipment, and British helicopters.

[. . .] The war, like most civil wars, has been brutal. While most of the civilian deaths are attributed to government forces, Amnesty International accuses both sides of "unlawful criminal deaths." The [Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist)] has assassinated government supporters and police, and occasionally bombed Kathmandu. The government has "disappeared" opponents, razed villages, and executed CPNM members and their supporters.

Over the past two years the Royal Nepal Army has beefed itself up to 72,000, but it isn't large enough to win a war against the CPNM's 4,000 core members and 15,000 or so militia supporters. In any case, most of the Army is concentrated near the capital, Kathmandu.

However, with the recent influx of U.S. M-16s, Belgium FAL submachine guns, and British helicopters, the army has grown more aggressive, and death rates have climbed. A government massacre of 19 villagers set off the latest round of fighting. In the first month following the collapse of a seven-month cease-fire, civilian deaths tripled. According to the Nepal human rights group, Informal Sector Service Centre, 800 of the 1,100 deaths since the end of the cease fire have been inflicted by government forces. A major culprit in the escalating death rate is the appearance of modern assault rifles, the real "Weapons of Mass Destruction."

I'm sure you're as thrilled about this as I am. There are some stats on gun deaths worldwide, and the US role as arms merchant to the globe, if you wanted to know more.

And while we're on the subject, Nepal politician shot dead:

Hem Narayan Yadav's body was found on Tuesday in the south-eastern district of Siraha, police say.

The authorities suspect rebel involvement, but there has been no word from the Maoists yet.

Nepal's largest communist party, the United Marxist-Leninist, which Mr Yadav represented, has called for an inquiry.

Don't worry, the Chinese are with us in supporting the Nepalese government.

Against the Maoist rebels.

Yes, that bit confuses me, too. . .