Live ammunition used against Nepal protesters, forensics show

At least 33 of the demonstrators killed during anti-corruption protests in Nepal this month were struck by "live bullets" fired from "high-velocity firearms", the medical institute that conducted the postmortem examinations told Reuters.

The findings were described by a member of the forensic medicine department of the Tribhuvan University Institute of Medicine. An institute spokesperson subsequently verified the account, marking the first official confirmation that live ammunition was used during the unrest, in which 74 people were killed and over two thousand injured. Unverified images of non-rubber ammunition and protesters with head and chest wounds had circulated on social media in the aftermath of the Gen-Z-led protests demonstrations that ultimately led to the resignation of PM KP Sharma Oli and his govt. A key protest leader had previously demanded arrests of Oli and his home minister, Ramesh Lekhak, for allegedly giving orders to use live ammunition on the demonstrators. He did not provide evidence. Oli had said in a Sept 20 Facebook post his govt had not ordered security forces to fire at protesters and urged an investigation "into the incidents in which shots were fired from automatic weapons that are not in police possession".

A spokesperson for Kathmandu District Office, said he had no knowledge about the use of live ammunition.

(This is a Reuters story)