By Lex Harvey and Sugam Pokharel for CNN
Demonstrators carry an injured victim during a protest outside the Parliament in Kathmandu on September 8, 2025, Photo: AFP / Prabin Ranabhat
More than a dozen people have been killed and hundreds injured during youth-led protests in Nepal sparked by a government ban on social media platforms, widespread corruption, and poor economic opportunities.
Security forces deployed live ammunition, water cannons, and tear gas during protests in several cities, in which authorities said at least 19 people were killed, according to news agency Reuters.
Nepal, a Himalayan country of 30 million people, is known for its turbulent politics and has seen more than a dozen governments since it transitioned to a republic after abolishing its 239-year-old monarchy in 2008 following a decade-long civil war.
Still, the latest protests, which are led by people ages 13 to 28 - the cohort known as Generation Z - are Nepal's worst unrest in decades and threaten to destabilize yet another government.
Demonstrators gathered outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest in Kathmandu. Photo: AFP / Prabin Ranabhat
What sparked the protests?
Anger against the government for what many view as rampant, decades-long corruption in Nepal was already simmering, and it spilled into the streets of the capital last week after the government blocked social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube and X, in a move that was widely criticized by rights groups.
The government had written new rules it said were needed to clamp down on fake news and hate speech and threatened to ban any social media companies that failed to register.
By midnight last Thursday, 26 platforms had gone dark, according to local media.
But organisers say the protests, which spread across the country, are not only about the social media ban but are also a reflection of generational frustration at poor economic opportunities.
The unemployment rate for youth aged 15-24 in Nepal was 20.8 percent in 2024, according to the World Bank.
Meanwhile, a viral online movement against "Nepo Kids" - politicians' children showing off their lavish lifestyles - is fueling further anger by highlighting the disparities between those in power and regular Nepalis.
Nepal's economy is heavily reliant on money sent home by Nepalis living abroad. More than a third (33.1 percent) of Nepal's GDP came from personal remittances, according to the World Bank, a number that has steadily risen over the past three decades.
"All the Nepali citizens are fed up (with) corruption. Every youth (is) going outside the country. So, we want to protect our youth and make the country's economy better," a protester told Reuters.
Protests turn deadly
The protests turned violent Monday as protesters clashed with police at the parliament complex in Kathmandu.
Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at thousands of young protesters, many of whom wore school or college uniforms, according to Reuters.
Protesters set fire to an ambulance and hurled objects at riot police guarding the legislature, Reuters reported, citing a local official.
"The police are firing indiscriminately," one protester told Indian news agency ANI.
At least 17 people were killed in Kathmandu and two more in the eastern city of Itahari, according to hospital officials.
People displaying Nepal's national flag burn tyres during a demonstration to condemn the police's deadly crackdown on protesters. Photo: AFP / Prabin Ranabhat
More than 400 people, including security forces staff, were hospitalized after suffering injuries on Monday, according to a report by Nepal's health ministry.
International organisations swiftly condemned the lethal crackdown by police and called for an independent investigation.
The UN human rights office said it was "shocked" by the deaths of the protesters and urged a "transparent" investigation. It said it has received "several deeply worrying allegations of unnecessary" use of force by security forces during the protests.
"The use of lethal force against protesters not posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury is a grave violation of international law," Amnesty International said in a statement.
Government under pressure
Nepal's Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak resigned Monday following the violence, Communications Minister Prithvi Subba confirmed to reporters late Monday.
The government also lifted the ban on social media platforms.
Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said his government was "not negative toward the demands raised by the Gen Z generation" and said he was "deeply saddened" by the incidents on Monday.
In a statement, he blamed "infiltration by various vested interest groups" for the violence, without elaborating on who the groups were.
On Tuesday, Nepal's biggest-selling newspaper called for Oli to step down, its editorial board arguing he "cannot sit in the PM's chair for a minute longer" after yesterday's bloodshed.
- CNN
