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 A massive flood and landslide disaster unleashed on the Nepal-Tibet border killed nearly 100 yesterday and left several hundred people missing, many of whom are foreign tourists.Surveillance footage verified by AFP shows dozens of people running away as a stories-tall surge of debris slams into the Chinese side of a border area, tossing lorries and buses aside as it strikes.Chinese state media reported "major casualties" from a mudslide at a Tibet border hub, reporting three dead and another 265 people missing.Nepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah vowed a maximum response, writing on social media: "The pain and loss you have suffered is not small. But I want to assure you that you are not alone in this difficult time — the state is with you with all its means and resources."Police in Nepal reported the death toll hit at least 95, with rescuers wading through mud and sludge to look for survivors in a flood that buried lower floors of multi-story buildings.Some 403 tourists — 341 of them foreigners — were unaccounted for several hours after the disaster struck, according to the ministry of culture tourism and civil aviation.Nepal's tourism board said Americans, Indians, Malaysians, Britons and an Australian were among those unaccounted for, as well as 62 Nepali travellers.Locals were left traumatised by the calamity, while experts cautioned that a lingering blockage in a river could produce an additional disastrous flood."I got a call from (my brother-in-law) this morning, and they were crying and said their entire house had been swept away. Three family members were rescued, but his brother is still missing," said 56-year-old local Raju Bhadel.The cause of the flooding was not immediately clear but Nepal's foreign minister Shishir Khanal said an earthquake likely triggered a landslide, which in turn blocked a river, sending water gushing downstream.The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said satellite data from Planet Labs indicated a "snow-rock landslide" on the Nepal-China border may have caused the flood.Images shared by Nepali police showed floodwater surging through a river, sweeping away houses in its path, while AFP images depicted the top floor of a house sticking out from muddy soil.The Nepali Army was carrying out flights and had rescued 114 people from one of the worst-affected Rasuwa district, according to the prime minister's secretariat.A police spokesman told AFP earlier that authorities had "alerted people who are staying near the riverside to relocate".The Nepal Electricity Authority said about 430 megawatts of production capacity, including from hydropower and solar facilities, has been damaged."The disaster has damaged the production, transmission and distribution facilities of the Authority... resulting in disruption of electricity supply," it said.Sarthak Shrestha, a remote sensing and geo information analyst at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), said a preliminary assessment showed "no anomalies" from China's side of the border."We believe a rock-ice avalanche occurred in Nepal, blocking the Lhende river and causing the cascading flood event," he told AFP.— Mudslide risk —Several highways were also closed, Nepali authorities said.Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported yesterday that "a mudslide disaster on the Nepalese side resulted in major casualties and missing people at the Gyirong Port" in Tibet.Footage shared by the broadcaster, which AFP was unable to immediately verify, showed rushing water carrying tree branches and debris, as well as a flooded road.China's leader said that "the most urgent task is doing everything possible to search for and rescue the missing people... quickly treat injured people and minimise casualties to the greatest extent possible", according to CCTV.Traffic authorities in Tibet's Shigatse said roads in the area were "at risk of mudslides and unsafe for passage" in a post to social media on Wednesday.In July last year, 17 people went missing after a mudslide near the Gyirong Port, Xinhua reported at the time.Monsoon rains from June to September regularly trigger deadly floods and landslides across South Asia.Scientists say climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events in the region.Qianggong Zhang, head of climate and environmental risks at ICIMOD, said a second flood may be imminent."With a blockage still lodged upstream on the Nepal-China border river, authorities warn a second flood may occur," he told AFP. 

 Qatar Charity Nepal’s Integrated Development Programme Phase II (2022–2026) demonstrates the value of integrated investment in essential services, economic resilience and emergency preparedness. With total grants of NPR1,264,255,804.31 and expenditure of NPR1,115,622,488.56 as of July 31, the programme combined long-term development with timely humanitarian action, helping vulnerable communities gain access to safer water, better education, stronger livelihoods, improved healthcare, and protection during crises. Implemented in co-ordination with Nepal’s Social Welfare Council, government authorities, local governments, community institutions and local partners, the programme delivered 3,003 development projects and nine emergency-response projects. Based on the sector figures reported, these interventions directly reached at least 119,693 people across education, livelihoods and social welfare, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), health, and disaster response. In education, 126 projects benefited 18,149 people. Support included school construction, scholarships, learning materials, bicycles and laptops for students in need, school furniture, transport assistance and sanitation facilities. Together, these measures improved access, attendance and the quality and safety of learning environments, particularly for disadvantaged children and young people.A further 899 projects reached 19,647 beneficiaries through social housing, women’s livelihood initiatives, small-business and vocational support, agricultural inputs, livestock, poultry and beekeeping, irrigation, disability assistance, food aid and Eid clothing distribution. The package strengthened household incomes, food security, self-reliance and social inclusion among women, persons with disabilities and low-income families. The largest portfolio was WASH, health, and hygiene, with 1,969 interventions serving 62,837 people. Projects included shallow tube wells, deep-bore water and irrigation schemes, sanitation facilities in schools and hospitals, reverse-osmosis purification plants, cataract screening and surgery camps, health camps and ambulance support. These investments expanded access to safe drinking water, sanitation and healthcare while supporting water availability for domestic and agricultural use. Nine emergency-response projects assisted 19,060 people affected by climate and disaster risks. Activities covered heatwave preparedness in the Terai, earthquake dignity kits, winterisation assistance, dengue-prevention kits, flood and landslide response, food baskets, nutritional support and other in-kind relief. The interventions provided rapid, practical help while strengthening community resilience and complementing national preparedness and response systems. Across all sectors, the programme supported Nepal’s progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, including poverty reduction, health, quality education, clean water and sanitation, decent work, reduced inequalities, sustainable communities, climate action and partnerships. Through its community-centred approach, Qatar Charity Nepal translated substantial funding into practical services and lasting opportunities for underserved communities nationwide. 

When he is not meeting with Nepal’s new foreign minister Shisir Khanal, to think through policy, Nikhil Sangroula (GU-Q '23) sits at his desk inside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, looking out at the dome of the new parliament building across the street. Below, first-time lawmakers move quickly between meetings, with a sense of momentum that feels new. “It is highly spirited in the bureaucratic class,” Sangroula said. “There is a fresh, vibrant energy in the administrative halls. Innovation and partnership are open in an unprecedented manner. I get to speak with young bureaucrats, mostly Gen Z, who are equally hopeful that this leadership will lead them to a better tomorrow. There is no chance, no option, for this government to fail. This is a turning moment for us.” But every time he looks out that window, he remembers September 2025. A government ban on social media set off protests that spread across the country. Streets filled with fires and broken storefronts. In a single day on September 8, state security forces killed 19 young protesters in broad daylight. Then, within hours, former Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli resigned, and Nepal was left without clear leadership. “The state’s failure to manage the situation, and the lives lost, mostly bystanders, was a genuine tragedy,” Sangroula said. “Having lived through it, my hope is simply that Nepal never has to go through anything like it again.” Out of that moment came the youngest governments in the world right now, led by Prime Minister Balendra Shah, at just 36 years old. Three years after graduating from Georgetown University in Qatar (GUQ), Sangroula now works close to its center as a Coordination, Implementation and Monitoring Officer in the Foreign Minister’s Secretariat. He supports the foreign minister’s research and analysis, helps draft speeches, and connects communities and experts with the ministry. A key part of his role is gathering data to support proposed policies.Sangroula grew up far from Kathmandu’s political circles. He was born and raised in Jhapa, in Nepal’s eastern lowlands, where his parents treated education as a necessity. That commitment to learning eventually took him far beyond Nepal’s borders. He went to Doha, where he studied Arabic, majored in international economics and minored in government at GU-Q.“Nepalis have migrated across the globe in search of opportunity, and they demonstrate a genuine acceptance, a willingness to welcome people of every belief without simply tolerating them,” he said. That belief in building bridges shaped his path after graduation. Sangroula joined the Nepal Leadership Academy, where he helped design workshops for emerging political leaders and supported a cross-party caucus focused on collaboration. Some of those same figures now are the members of parliament. Inside the ministry, Sangroula leads its first internship and fellowship program, bringing early-career professionals into public service. He sees a generation less focused on ideology and more focused on results, impatient for better governance, but still learning how the state moves. “The country has a lot more aspiration for efficient public service delivery and stable politics,” he said. “People are looking for swift delivery on outcomes of development. In general, people are not looking for ideology or abstractions. There is strong demand for good governance and economic development.”He does not see youth alone as the answer. What changed, he said, was a growing exhaustion with stagnation. “In my interaction with bureaucrats who have lived through this transition, there is a lot of energy, vitality and proactiveness in the new political class leading the nation today,” he said. “Age is definitely a factor, but even more so were a few octogenarian leaders who had been in power for a long time, and their passivity, which led to discontent for a long time.” For GU-Q students considering public service, his advice: “A lot of people our age want fast, visible change. But every state is inherently conservative in how it moves. If you want change, you need to build consensus and bring people along. The impact of working with government is slower, but it lasts.” 

Nepal's former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, who faces arrest in a corruption case, returned to the country yesterday nearly six months after leaving for medical treatment abroad.The veteran leader of the opposition Nepali Congress party waved and smiled as hundreds of supporters lined up the streets leading to Tribhuvan airport in the capital Kathmandu.In April, police issued an arrest warrant for Deuba over money laundering charges, making him the latest high-profile figure targeted under the current government of Prime Minister Balendra Shah.Deuba, 80, who left Nepal in February, has denied the allegations against him.The five-term prime minister is set to attend a three-day assembly of his party starting today.Gita Chaudhari, a Deuba supporter, said the former premier "is our guardian and a guardian of this nation"."We are grateful for the freedom and rights he gave us," she told AFP, as she waited to welcome him back to Nepal."With a heart full of gratitude and an open mind ready to embrace the possibilities of change, I have returned to you after five months of medical treatment," Deuba said in a Facebook post after his arrival."I return with a deep sense of respect for our shared national responsibility," he added."I have returned not to gain power, but to strengthen the national unity."Nepal police spokesman Abi Narayan Kafle said Deuba's case — including any decision to arrest him — is being handled by the Department of Money Laundering Investigation."We are giving security for him at the airport and to his rally because he is a former prime minister," Kafle told AFP.Authorities have also issued a warrant for Deuba's wife, former foreign minister Arzu Rana Deuba.The warrants were issued a month after Shah won a landslide victory on a platform of youth-driven political change, in the first elections since deadly protests in September 2025.Shah's administration has launched a sweeping crackdown on high-profile political figures since coming to power.Former prime minister KP Sharma Oli and ex-home minister Ramesh Lekhak were arrested briefly in March for their alleged roles in last year's protests.The youth-led uprising was triggered by a brief social media ban but tapped into longstanding frustration over corruption and economic hardship in the Himalayan nation.Protesters set fire to the parliament building and offices, eventually toppling the government.Deuba's home was among the buildings torched, and videos of protesters attacking the couple circulated widely online. Bundles of cash were reportedly discovered at the property.In his testimony to a commission investigating the protests, Deuba dismissed videos circulating on social media as potentially fabricated."This is a conspiracy, although I do not know who is behind it," he said.The commission has recommended further investigation into the cash allegedly found at Deuba's home and other properties.Deuba's tenure as president of the Nepali Congress ended in January, after younger members pushed for a leadership change. 

Nepal, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Oman have qualified for the ‌men's cricket competition ​at the ‌Asian Games, set to ‌be ⁠held ‌in Japan ‌in September and October.Nepal ⁠and Malaysia finished top of Group A in the qualifying tournament in Singapore, while Hong Kong and Oman led Group ​B.With Qatar withdrawing from Group A before the start of ‌the tournament, ⁠Nepal secured ​top spot after winning ​both their matches, while Malaysia qualified with victory over China in their opening fixture.Hong Kong and Oman remained unbeaten in Group B and will face ‌off to decide ‌the semi-final ⁠matchups, with the winner ⁠taking ⁠on Malaysia and the loser meeting Nepal.They will join Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, who ​qualified automatically as Asia's Full Member nations, along with hosts Japan.The men's competition will begin on September 24, with the final scheduled for October 3. 

A Nepali climbing guide who went missing on Mount Everest for six days and was believed dead has been found alive after crawling alone almost to Base Camp, officials told AFP yesterday.His wife had even begun to offer last rite prayers for his soul, she told AFP at the hospital in the capital Kathmandu, where he is recovering from "some frostbite" but is conscious.Mountaineer Dawa Sherpa — who is in his 50s, and is better known as "Hillary", like famed climber Edmund Hillary — vanished on the upper reaches of the world's highest mountain in bitter conditions, early on May 30.He was found yesterday morning close to Base Camp by the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), a Nepali team that helps set routes on Everest and clean up waste left behind."He was found by a team of SPCC this morning close to the base camp — he was crawling down," Pemba Sherpa of 8K Expeditions, which was overseeing search and rescue efforts, told AFP.A helicopter flew him to Kathmandu, where an AFP team saw him carried out on a stretcher."He is awake and undergoing treatment," Nishant Dhakal, a doctor in the intensive care unit of Kathmandu's HAMS Hospital, said."We are managing his frostbites, cold injuries, hydration and trauma. He is being further evaluated and will be in our ICU."Dawa Sherpa's wife, Damu Sherpa, said her family was overjoyed."We were very happy to hear the news, we had given up hope," she said. "We also began puja (last rite prayers) yesterday."His daughter Mendo Lhamu Sherpa said they almost did not believe it when they received a telephone call to say that he was found."At first we were not sure if it was him — but they sent us photos to confirm, and then I was happy," she said.— 'Tiger of the mountains' —Climber Chris Thrall, a former British Royal Marine, said he successfully summited the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) peak with Dawa Sherpa around 5:00pm on May 29.He posted a video message on Instagram on Wednesday mourning what he thought was the death of Dawa Sherpa.He called him an "absolute gentle giant of a man and a true 'tiger of the mountains'", in a post that assumed the worst.Thrall described how on May 30 he had begun to descend from Camp Four — at around 7,950m, just below the low-oxygen "death zone".He said that as he descended, Dawa Sherpa stopped."He sat down for a rest with his backpack, these guys carry huge loads," he said."And I turned and I said, 'Hillary, are you okay, brother?' He said, 'Yes, yes, fine Chris, please go, go!' This is nothing new, you know, I'd go ahead, he'd go ahead."As Thrall went down, he found a Polish climber who was struggling after running out of supplementary oxygen and had suffered frostbite."It had been a long summit push. What should have been five days to the summit and back took us 11 days, that's how challenging the conditions were," said Thrall."So, do I go back for Sherpa, who's probably going to rock up and be fine, as he has done hundreds of times before?" he added."Or do I help my fellow climber, who's got no oxygen, frostbite in his fingers, and obviously you're never far off hypothermia up there?"Thrall described tough conditions, sharing his oxygen cylinder with the Pole as they descended, taking 11 hours to get to Camp Three. It would usually take two hours."I realised we had a really serious situation," he said.Search teams set out to find Dawa Sherpa but he was not seen again until yesterday morning, having made his way down on his own.The climb was one of the last of the season, meaning that there were few other mountaineers on the peak.At least five people have died this season — two Indians and three Nepali climbers involved in Everest preparations.More than 1,000 climbers reached the summit of Everest this season, according to initial tallies by Nepali officials, making it the busiest season on record. 

A record number of climbers reached the summit of Mount Everest in a single day from the southern face of the peak in Nepal, officials said Thursday, estimating the total at about 275.The world's highest peak can be scaled from either the southern side in Nepal or the northern face in China's Tibet, but Chinese authorities have closed the route this year.Nepal's tourism department said an estimated 275 people scaled the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) peak on Wednesday, noting that a higher number had reached the peak in 2023 from both sides.Officials said the final number will be tallied after the climbs are verified, which require photographs and statements from the climber's expedition company and guides."This is the highest ever number of single-day summits in the history of Mount Everest expeditions who have reached the peak of Mount Everest," Himal Gautam, spokesman for the department, told AFP."We still need to verify the official data, as we must issue certificates to them."In 2023, a higher number of mountaineers from China and Nepal sides reached the top of the Everest in a single day, he added without giving a number.A climbing boom has made mountaineering a lucrative business in Nepal since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa made the first ascent of Everest in 1953.The country has issued a record 492 Everest permits this season, with a city of tents set up at the foot of the mountain for climbers and support staff.Approximately 600 people, including mountaineers and support staff, have climbed Everest since the start of this year's spring climbing season last month.The high numbers have rekindled concerns about overcrowding on the mountain, which straddles the Nepal-China border, especially if poor weather shortens the climbing window.The climbing season is likely to wrap up by the first week of June. 

Nepal votes Thursday in the first elections since deadly youth-led anti-corruption protests toppled the government in September 2025.Key figures contesting for power include a former prime minister seeking a return to power, a rapper-turned-mayor bidding for the youth vote, and the newly elected leader of the Nepali Congress party.Here are three of the most closely watched candidates in the March 5 parliamentary polls — all central figures in an election that analysts say is unlikely to deliver an outright majority for any single party. Gagan Thapa, 49 Gagan Thapa presents himself as the face of generational change, arguing that the country can no longer be run by what he calls an "old age" club of revolving veteran leaders.Thapa led an internal revolt in January to be elected as head of the Nepali Congress, the country's oldest and historically dominant party, which had been the largest member of the ousted coalition government.Born in 1976, Thapa was drawn into politics as a teenager during the 1990 pro-democracy movement against the then absolute monarchy.He rose through student activism, linked to the Nepali Congress, and became a prominent figure in the 2006 mass uprising that forced the king to abdicate.Jailed several times for street protests, he then entered parliament as one of its youngest members. He has since served multiple terms, and been health minister."I am the right mix of energy and experience — the right mix which can deliver," Thapa told AFP, pledging governance reform and job creation, while promising to work across party lines.KP Sharma Oli, 74Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli is one of Nepal's most seasoned and polarising political figures.A veteran Marxist leader who has served four times as prime minister, he was ousted in September's protests at his rule.Leader of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), Oli has spent nearly six decades in politics.He was drawn into underground communist activism as a teenager and was arrested in 1973 for campaigning against the monarchy. He spent 14 years in prison, including four in solitary confinement.He later rose through party ranks to become prime minister in 2015, returning to office multiple times in Nepal's turbulent parliamentary landscape.Critics accuse him of an authoritarian streak and intolerance of dissent, while supporters credit him with strong leadership and nationalist resolve, particularly in navigating relations with India and China.Oli denies ordering security forces to fire on protesters during last year's unrest, in which at least 77 people were killed and crowds torched parliament.Oli told AFP he blames "infiltrators" for the violence.Despite his dramatic fall, he won re-election as party chief in December and is seeking a comeback, framing the vote as a "competition between those who burn the country and those who build it".Balendra Shah, 35Balendra Shah, widely known as "Balen", has emerged as a symbol of youth-driven political change, after backing the protests that forced the government from power.Born in Kathmandu in 1990, he was a schoolboy during Nepal's decade-long Maoist civil war.A former underground hip-hop artist whose songs railed against corruption and inequality, the 35-year-old civil engineer first shot to national prominence through music.He translated that online popularity into a shock political victory in 2022, when he was elected Kathmandu's first independent mayor.Shah built a reputation as a blunt and often confrontational reformer, launching campaigns against tax evasion, traffic congestion and waste mismanagement.In December, Shah joined the centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), positioning himself for national leadership.He has taken the unusual step of challenging former prime minister Oli in his home constituency, telling AFP that it shows he is "not taking the easy way out".Advocating a liberal economic system with social justice, including free education and healthcare for the poor, Shah says Gen Z's core demand is good governance — and insists music will remain part of his identity, even if he becomes prime minister. 

A delegation from the National News Agency Nepal, headed by Executive Chairman Dharmendra Jha, visited the headquarters of Qatar News Agency (QNA) to enhance co-operation and exchange expertise. The delegation was briefed on the nature of QNA's work and the developments it has witnessed recently across its various departments.**media[391504]**The delegation toured several QNA departments to learn about the modern work systems utilised by Qatar News Agency (QNA), which positively enhance daily operations. The delegation also visited the QNA Training Hall, where they learned about the specialised and high-quality training programms offered, as well as its role in training journalism graduates and media personnel in the State who wish to join QNA or other state institutions.  

His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani sent a cable of congratulations to the President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal Ramchandra Paudel on the occasion of the Constitution Day.

Weeping relatives held funerals on Tuesday for loved ones at a sacred Hindu site in Nepal's capital of Kathmandu, after their deaths in anti-graft protests last week that brought a change of government in the Himalayan nation.At least 72 people died in the unrest and the vandalism and arson that followed "Gen Z" protests by young people frustrated at a lack of opportunities and perceived government lethargy, with more than 2,100 injured.Thousands of relatives and onlookers watched as smoke and ash wreathed the pyres of four cremated near the temple of Lord Pashupatinath in the capital, following Hindu tradition.A national flag was placed on each coffin, while police gave them a guard of honour as a mark of respect."He will never return now," said Rachana Khatiwada, a mother among them, who sobbed as she held a framed portrait of her 18-year-son Rashik, killed in front of parliament."He said he would not participate in the protests, watch from the outside and return home early," she told Reuters.Earlier, a truck had wended its way in solemn procession through the city carrying six coffins, with five more placed on separate vehicles garlanded with marigolds and banners, after hospital officials handed the bodies to relatives.Two ministers of Nepal's new interim government joined the convoy.Helicopters carried the bodies of others killed in the protests to home towns outside Kathmandu.Bina Maharjan said she prayed for the well-being of her brother Binod, 34, after hearing of the violence at the protests he was attending, only to be told of his death later in a telephone call from friends."We told him not to go for the protests," Maharjan added. "But he insisted and went, only to get killed."She said a postmortem showed her brother had been hit by a bullet that passed through one cheek and emerged from the other, while a second stuck in his throat.Binod had refused even to marry as he had always wanted to "sacrifice and do something" for the country, she added. "He has just done that."Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki, 73, took the reins as Nepal's first woman prime minister last week, tasked with holding national elections on March 5. She has picked three ministers with reformist credentials for her interim cabinet.

Nepal's new leader vowed Sunday to follow protesters' demands to "end corruption" as she began work as interim prime minister, after "Gen Z" youth demonstrations ousted her predecessor. Sushila Karki, the 73-year-old former chief justice, has been tasked with restoring order and addressing protesters' demands for a corruption-free future ahead of elections in six months. Protests, sparked by a ban on social media and feeding into long-standing economic woes, began on Monday and quickly escalated, with parliament and key government buildings set ablaze. "We have to work according to the thinking of the Gen Z generation," Karki said in her first public comments since taking office on Friday. A fifth of people in Nepal aged 15-24 are unemployed, according to the World Bank, with GDP per capita standing at just $1,447, in the Himalayan nation of 30 million people. "What this group is demanding is the end of corruption, good governance and economic equality," she added. Karki held a minute's silence on Sunday for those killed in the unrest, before meetings began in the key government complex of Singha Durbar -- where several buildings were set on fire during mass protests on Tuesday. At least 72 people were killed in two days of protests, and 191 injured, the government's chief secretary Eaknarayan Aryal said Sunday, increasing an earlier toll of 51. It was the worst unrest since the end of a decade-long civil war and the abolition of the monarchy in 2008. The appointment of Karki, known for her independence, came after intense negotiations by army chief General Ashok Raj Sigdel and President Ram Chandra Paudel, including with representatives of "Gen Z", the loose umbrella title of the youth protest movement. Thousands of young activists had used the Discord app to name Karki as their choice of leader. "The situation that I have come in, I have not wished to come here. My name was brought from the streets," Karki said. Parliament has been dissolved and elections set for March 5, 2026. "We will not stay here more than six months in any situation, we will complete our responsibilities and pledge to hand over to the next parliament and ministers," she added, in a speech to the nation. Ordinary Nepalis said they were hopeful the government would bring change -- but were aware the challenges were heavy. "This government's list of responsibilities and issues to address isn't easy," said grocery shopkeeper Satya Narayan, 69, in Pharping village, about an hour outside the capital. "It also needs to ensure unity and harmony in the country by taking all sections along". President Paudel, who swore Karki into office, said late Saturday that "a peaceful solution has been found through a difficult process". Soldiers have scaled back their presence on the streets, where they had been deployed in large numbers after the protests. But more than 12,500 prisoners who escaped from jails during the chaos are on the run, and present a daunting security headache. Regional leaders have congratulated Karki, including Nepal's two giant neighbours, India and China. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said New Delhi supported "peace, progress and prosperity" in Hindu-majority Nepal, while Beijing's foreign ministry said it wanted to "push China-Nepal relations steadily forward". Buddhism is the country's second-largest religion, and the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, wished Karki "every success in fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of the people of Nepal in these challenging times."