At least 43 anti-government guerrillas were killed during security operations in the past two days in different parts of Nepal, a Royal Nepal Army officer said Friday.
Twelve guerrillas including a leader were killed by angry local people of Sirshihawa and Ganeshpur villages in Kaplivastu district, some 300 km southwest of Kathmandu, the officer said on condition of anonymity.
Around 5,000 locals swarmed into the guerrillas' shelters and beat 12 guerrillas to death on the spot after the rebels abducted a former police sub-inspector from a nearby village.
On Wednesday, at least 25 guerrillas were killed and a large number of others wounded after the security forces launched an operation to disperse about 800 guerrillas who had gathered at Kureli Kharikot area of Rolpa district in mid-western Nepal.
In another security operation on Wednesday, two guerrillas were killed in the far-western district of Baitadi and four others in the eastern district of Tehrathum.
More than 11,000 Nepalese people have lost their lives since the anti-government insurgency broke out in February 1996.