Nepali rebels kill police officer

Police in Nepal say suspected Maoist rebels have killed the most senior police officer to die at their hands since the Maoist insurgency was launched more than five years ago to try to replace Nepal's constitutional monarchy with a communist republic.

The officer, Parmeshwor Jung Sijapati, was shot when he was on patrol in the western district of Dang ,some 400 km west of Kathmandu.

There has been no word from the rebels, who killed nearly 40 policemen in a series of attacks on Friday.

The Maoists have stepped up their attacks since last month's massacre of most of the royal family by crown prince Dipendra, who then shot himself.

A series of small bombs have gone off in Kathmandu recently.

Police said one small bomb exploded near the residence of the daughter of the prime minister, Girija Prasad Koirala, early on Wednesday.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service