14 killed in Nepal protests against social media ban

Unrest killed at least 14 people and injured dozens in Nepal’s capital on Monday, as police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters trying to storm parliament in anger at a social media shutdown and corruption, Reuters writes.

Some protesters forced their way into the parliament complex by breaking through a barricade, a local official said, setting fire to an ambulance, hurling objects at riot police and ferrying the injured to hospital on motorcycles.

More than 50 people were injured, Nepal Television said.

A government decision to block access to several social media platforms, including Facebook, last week has fuelled anger among the young. About 90% of Nepal’s 30 million people use the internet.

Officials said they imposed the ban because platforms had failed to register with authorities in a crackdown on misuse, including false social media accounts used to spread hate speech and fake news, and commit fraud.