Nepal vows to foil Maoist blockade

The prisoners were freed when hundreds of Maoist rebels stormed the jail in the western Kailaliat region late Wednesday in their first big offensive since the king assumed absolute powers in the Himalayan outpost on February 1.

"An intense search is under way for the 145 escaped prisoners in the area," a security official said.

US military and other aid to Nepal is at risk following the seizure of absolute power by King Gyanendra, Washington's top envoy to the Himalayan kingdom warned yesterday.

"There is pressure on US assistance here, that's undeniable," US ambassador James Moriarty told reporters when asked for Washin-gton's response to the ongoing detention of Nepalese political leaders and human right activists.

"That pressure will increase if we don't see movement in those areas," he said after inaugurating a South Asia Student Leader Conference sponsored by the US mission in Nepal.

Asked if US aid would be cut off, he said, "I think it's at risk, everything is at risk."

Five soldiers and at least one rebel died in the attack reported late Thursday in the kingdom, which has been under emergency rule since the monarch sacked the government and declared emergency rule.

"Hundreds of Maoist rebels tried to attack various government offices," including those of the police and district administration, "but were bravely repulsed by security forces," the security official told AFP.

"Several hundred rebels first controlled the jail and set free 168 inmates including 60 Maoist rebels and ran away with some arms and ammunition," he said. Twenty-three of the prisoners had been put back behind bars, he said.

The official said the Maoists suffered heavy casualties but only one body was found because the rebels had carried away their dead. The militants routinely take away the bodies to avoid their identification and their network being uncovered.