Chaos has descended on Nepal amid raging mass protests against a short-lived ban on social media, and accusations of widespread government corruption. The small Himalayan country has descended into hellish conditions in less than a mere 48 hours of raging anti-government demonstrations.
The protests appear mostly led by the young, after several popular social media sites were blocked and clashes with police led to authorities firing on crowds, resulting in 19 people dead.
But even after the social media ban was lifted amid the pressure and mayhem, demonstrators set fire to the homes of top Nepalese leaders and and even parliament building.
Specifically Facebook, X, Instagram, and YouTube were blocked among some two dozen others, after the government said the companies failed to comply with local law by failing to register for requred government oversight.
Parliament burned and surrounded by thousands...
The airport was also shuttered and army helicopters were seen deployed to rescue government ministers from the mob. Apparently, the country's finance minister wasn't so lucky...
India Today: Nepal's Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel reportedly chased by protesters and kicked after a video showed him fleeing down a street.
According to reports, "Nepal's finance minister was chased and beaten by demonstrators Tuesday as Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned following days of violent student-led protests against corruption and a ban on social media."
Residents of top politicians in Kathmandu have been reported attacked and in some cases damaged or set on fire, including the prime minister of the country, KP Sharma Oli. He has since stepped down in the wake of the protester killings.
"Oli’s private home was among those set on fire, as were those of the president, home minister and the leader of the country’s largest party, Nepali Congress, which is part of the governing coalition," AP reports.
"Oli’s family was at the official residence at the time. The home of the leader of the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) was also set ablaze," AP adds.
The moment at which police opened fire on crowds was the tipping point. Even after the social media ban was reversed, the rioting became more intense.
“We are here to protest because our youths and friends are getting killed, we are here to see that justice is done and the present regime is ousted,” one eyewitness interviewed by international press outside the damaged parliament building said Tuesday. "K.P. Oli should be chased away."
A key part of what's driving the outrage related to the protests dubbed 'Gen Z' is that those killed by police were found to have been shot in the head and chest, according to hospital staff who received the dead and wounded.
One protester told the BBC, "Rather than the social media ban, I think everyone's focus is on corruption." She added, "We want our country back - we came to stop corruption."