Nepal US embassy guard killed

Three unidentified gunmen shot dead an off-duty Nepalese guard of the US embassy in Kathmandu on Saturday, police said.

The guard, identified as Deepak Pokhrel, was shot in his house, about 5 kilometres (3 miles) from the embassy.

Police said they were investigating the case but had not arrested anyone.

Nepal has been wracked by a six-year Maoist insurgency that has left more than 7,000 people dead.

It was not immediately clear if the shooting was related to the rebellion.

(From the newsroom of BBC World Service)