Nepal's Crown Prince Massacres Royal Family, Kills Self

duck hunt · June 1, 2001, 08:59 PM

Foreign Affairs Breaking News News Keywords: NEPAL, CROWN PRINCE
Source: Yahoo News via AP
Published: 06/01/01 Author: BINAJ GURUACHARYA
Posted on 06/01/2001 17:55:47 PDT by MVV

By BINAJ GURUACHARYA, Associated Press Writer

KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Nepal's crown prince opened fire in the royal palace of this tiny Himalayan nation on Friday, killing the king, queen, his brother and sister before turning the gun on himself, a senior military official said. Four others died in the shooting, which apparently stemmed from a dispute over his choice of a bride.

The official said Crown Prince Dipendra, 30, killed his parents, King Birendra and Queen Aiswarya, his younger brother, Prince Nirajan, and his sister, Princess Shruti. The princess is married and has two daughters.

According to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the shooting was prompted by a dispute over the crown prince's marriage because his mother, the queen, reportedly objected to his choice of a bride. No other details were immediately available.

The crown prince, educated at Britain's Eton College, was heir to the throne.

A helicopter was sent to Chitwan, 75 miles southwest of Katmandu, to pick up Prince Gyanendra, the King's younger brother, according to sources at the airport.

Prince Gyanendra, who is next in line to the throne, was expected to succeed King Birendra. The government was expected to make a formal announcement only after the king's brother replaces him.

Katmandu, the capital of 1.5 million, woke up Saturday to news of the shootings. Hundreds of people began walking toward the royal palace in the heart of the city. Police cordoned off the outer periphery of the building.

King Birendra held nearly absolute power until 1990, when seven weeks of demonstrations and riots forced him to give into demands from democracy activists. A parliamentary government was established and the king has since remained a figurehead much like the queen of England, appearing in ceremonies and addressing the Parliament once a year.

The turning point in the resistance of the Harvard-education king came on April 6, 1990, when police fired at 200,000 demonstrators marching toward the royal palace. Officials said at least 72 people died, but witnesses put the death toll at more than 300.

Birendra was crowned king in 1972 to replace his late father, King Mahrendra. He was the latest monarch in the Shah dynasty, which has held the throne since the mid-1700s. Many Nepalis, especially illiterate farmers who comprise the bulk of this country's 22 million people, viewed the king as the reincarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. Some 90 percent of Nepal's population is Hindu.

Hundreds of people lined the streets of Katmandu last Dec. 29 to greet King Birendra on his 55th birthday. Schools and government offices were closed as well.

In New York, United Nations (news - web sites) Secretary-General Kofi Annan (news - web sites)'s office issued a statement saying Annan was ``profoundly shocked'' by the killings. Annan ``extends his heartfelt condolences to the people of Nepal and calls for calm and stability in this difficult period,'' the statement said.

Nepal is located in South Asia along the slopes of the Himalayan mountains and is home to eight of the world's 14 peaks above 26,400 feet, the tallest being Mount Everest (news - web sites).

It is bordered on the north by China and on the east, south and west by India. It is the size and shape of the state of Tennessee

George Hill · June 1, 2001, 09:45 PM

Goofy

Gorthaur · June 1, 2001, 10:12 PM

I think I've seen this one. It turns out that the next in line for the throne is John Goodman.

croyance · June 1, 2001, 11:07 PM

Nepal is also where the famous Gurka mercenaries come from. Those illiterate farmers helped the U.K. oppress many in the Empire. The money they made in enforcing the continuing existance of Empire let them retire well. Many bought farms back home. It turns out life as a soldier is much easier than living on the farm.

When the British made their (unfortunately) bloodless withdraw from Hong Kong, they absolutely refused to give these faithful Servants of the Empire visas. They were good enough to kill for the Empire and no more.

It is surprising that some police could hold back a crowd that includes those mercenaries and their families.

Calamity Jane · June 1, 2001, 11:25 PM

Just another example of how Only the Elite/Monarchy/Ruling Establishment is capable of handling firearms responsibly.

YEAH (said in best Clint Eastwood voice).

DC · June 2, 2001, 02:40 AM

Quote:

I think I've seen this one. It turns out that the next in line for the throne is John
Goodman.

LMAO!!!! I swear, I thought the same thing

dinosaur · June 2, 2001, 04:46 AM

Dead · June 2, 2001, 07:48 AM

dinosaur,

Where do I buy tickets to that???

ctdonath · June 2, 2001, 10:03 AM

For some reason I'm reminded of an exchange in The Lion In Winter:

"He's got a knife!"
"Of course he's got a knife! We've all got knives. It's 1185 and we're barbarians."

Maybe if the rest of the royal family had "knives" they'd be alive now...

IZZY · June 2, 2001, 11:30 PM

I don't know if it means anything, but a huge crowd converged on parlement accusing them of a political assasination. ( can we really rule it out?) they had to be dispersed with tear gas, rubber bullets ( real bullets as well?)

swifter... · June 3, 2001, 12:06 AM

Damn. How awful!

Were there drugs involved?

Could we put some in the DC water system?

dinosaur · June 3, 2001, 08:15 AM

The shootings were an "accident"?

I know, he was cleaning it and it went off. Then he looked down the barrel like he`d seen Algore do to see if it was empty.

What a senseless tragedy.

This should make the MMM`s website for sure.

Walosi · June 3, 2001, 09:16 AM

This could be a severe pivotal point for a small, very poor nation. They have a Prime Minister who has been embroiled in a scam airline leasing arrangement, an active "Maoist" element blowing up rural police stations and ambushing polce patrols and a congress that is so deadlocked that the several parties can't even agree on who they are for/against.

An early report on Nepal News ("modified" in a later version) said that the Prince appeared to be inebriated at family dinner, and was asked to leave. He returned later in full battle dress, and began his shooting spree. When aides tried to subdue him, he shot himself through the head, and remains alive on life support, but is clinically "brain dead". On this technicality, he succeeds his father as king, and his uncle has been appointed regent to rule in his place.

This is a tough little country, and the people who survive there are hardworking and have much to their credit.

Mike in VA · June 3, 2001, 09:22 AM

It seems the crown prince is still alive, though in serious condition, claiming it was an "accident" with an automatic weapon. Idjit. He's been declared King, but an uncle is standing in for him until he recovers. Life is strange there, must be the altitude. M2

Navy joe · June 3, 2001, 05:45 PM

Looks like they appointed Nate Brazill as royal family spokesman. You know he just pointed the gun and it accidentally emptied the mag on the family. I don't think he's gonna live as more than an eggplant, if he does pull through better get Johnnie Cochran.

Gary H · June 3, 2001, 09:39 PM

Is Diane Feinstein pushing gun control for Nepal?

Libertarian · June 3, 2001, 11:13 PM

He died tonight. I wonder if his parents are waiting to have a talk to him on the other side?

Dead · June 4, 2001, 06:36 AM

Here is a snip from the lastest newsreports (i use that term VERY loosely for some reason?).

" Dipendra had been in a coma since Friday when he either mowed down his family in a hail of automatic rifle fire following a row over his choice of bride, or suffered fatal injuries when an AK-47 inexplicably "exploded" and wiped out his family. "

Just like a grenade inexplicably explodes if one pulls the pin, and throws it. geee imagine that, it went off some how????

Kharn · June 4, 2001, 09:02 AM

You never know, he could have had an underbarrel grenade launcher on his AK...

Kharn

dZ · June 4, 2001, 10:41 AM

i am envisioning a really sick Saturday Night live Skit,
kinda like Akroid's Julia child accidently severing major arteries sketch...

A 30 round clip in a full auto AK "accidentally" connecting fatally with 8 people????

Thats quite the AD

Daddy, can you help me with the selector on my assault rifle? it seems to be stuck...

**TheBluesMan** · June 4, 2001, 11:29 AM

Reports that I have read on cnn.com have said that they found 40 bullets just in the King's and one of his sons' bodies. Other reports say the prince had two automatic rifles and that he used a pistol to shoot himself. Another source says that it was a planned assasination/coup to take the royal family out of the picture once and for all and keep power in the newly formed government.

We may never know what *really* happened.

My questions are: Doesn't the king have armed bodyguards? What happened to them? Were they there and did they die too? Did they get off any shots at the prince?

June 1, 2001, 08:59 PM	#1
duck hunt Senior Member Join Date: February 6, 2000 Posts: 484	Foreign Affairs Breaking News News Keywords: NEPAL, CROWN PRINCE Source: Yahoo News via AP Published: 06/01/01 Author: BINAJ GURUACHARYA Posted on 06/01/2001 17:55:47 PDT by MVV By BINAJ GURUACHARYA, Associated Press Writer KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Nepal's crown prince opened fire in the royal palace of this tiny Himalayan nation on Friday, killing the king, queen, his brother and sister before turning the gun on himself, a senior military official said. Four others died in the shooting, which apparently stemmed from a dispute over his choice of a bride. The official said Crown Prince Dipendra, 30, killed his parents, King Birendra and Queen Aiswarya, his younger brother, Prince Nirajan, and his sister, Princess Shruti. The princess is married and has two daughters. According to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the shooting was prompted by a dispute over the crown prince's marriage because his mother, the queen, reportedly objected to his choice of a bride. No other details were immediately available. The crown prince, educated at Britain's Eton College, was heir to the throne. A helicopter was sent to Chitwan, 75 miles southwest of Katmandu, to pick up Prince Gyanendra, the King's younger brother, according to sources at the airport. Prince Gyanendra, who is next in line to the throne, was expected to succeed King Birendra. The government was expected to make a formal announcement only after the king's brother replaces him. Katmandu, the capital of 1.5 million, woke up Saturday to news of the shootings. Hundreds of people began walking toward the royal palace in the heart of the city. Police cordoned off the outer periphery of the building. King Birendra held nearly absolute power until 1990, when seven weeks of demonstrations and riots forced him to give into demands from democracy activists. A parliamentary government was established and the king has since remained a figurehead much like the queen of England, appearing in ceremonies and addressing the Parliament once a year. The turning point in the resistance of the Harvard-education king came on April 6, 1990, when police fired at 200,000 demonstrators marching toward the royal palace. Officials said at least 72 people died, but witnesses put the death toll at more than 300. Birendra was crowned king in 1972 to replace his late father, King Mahrendra. He was the latest monarch in the Shah dynasty, which has held the throne since the mid-1700s. Many Nepalis, especially illiterate farmers who comprise the bulk of this country's 22 million people, viewed the king as the reincarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. Some 90 percent of Nepal's population is Hindu. Hundreds of people lined the streets of Katmandu last Dec. 29 to greet King Birendra on his 55th birthday. Schools and government offices were closed as well. In New York, United Nations (news - web sites) Secretary-General Kofi Annan (news - web sites)'s office issued a statement saying Annan was ``profoundly shocked'' by the killings. Annan ``extends his heartfelt condolences to the people of Nepal and calls for calm and stability in this difficult period,'' the statement said. Nepal is located in South Asia along the slopes of the Himalayan mountains and is home to eight of the world's 14 peaks above 26,400 feet, the tallest being Mount Everest (news - web sites). It is bordered on the north by China and on the east, south and west by India. It is the size and shape of the state of Tennessee __________________ quack ~~~ Read my book! Snake Hips -- in stores now!

June 1, 2001, 11:25 PM	#5
Calamity Jane Senior Member Join Date: March 13, 2001 Location: East Tennessee Posts: 902	Oh, yes... Just another example of how Only the Elite/Monarchy/Ruling Establishment is capable of handling firearms responsibly. YEAH (said in best Clint Eastwood voice). __________________ CJ “The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.” ~ Ernest Hemingway

June 2, 2001, 04:46 AM	#7
dinosaur Senior Member Join Date: December 28, 1999 Location: NE Pa. Posts: 1,247	Would this be the same as Feinstein turning on Chuckie & Hillary?

June 2, 2001, 07:48 AM	#8
Dead Senior Member Join Date: June 5, 2000 Location: AoW Land, USA Posts: 1,809	dinosaur, Where do I buy tickets to that??? __________________ Dead [Black Ops] www.therallypoint.org

June 3, 2001, 12:06 AM	#11
swifter... Senior Member Join Date: March 16, 1999 Location: So. CA Mountains Posts: 541	Damn. How awful! Were there drugs involved? Could we put some in the DC water system? __________________ There are damn few situations so screwed up that adding government to them will not make 'em worse... The best homeland security is an armed & informed citizenery! Molon Labe!

June 1, 2001, 09:45 PM	#2
George Hill Staff Alumnus Join Date: October 14, 1998 Location: Lapoint, Utah Posts: 11,479	Goofy

June 1, 2001, 10:12 PM	#3
Gorthaur Senior Member Join Date: January 19, 2000 Posts: 851	I think I've seen this one. It turns out that the next in line for the throne is John Goodman.

June 1, 2001, 11:07 PM	#4
croyance Senior Member Join Date: March 30, 2001 Posts: 3,604	Nepal is also where the famous Gurka mercenaries come from. Those illiterate farmers helped the U.K. oppress many in the Empire. The money they made in enforcing the continuing existance of Empire let them retire well. Many bought farms back home. It turns out life as a soldier is much easier than living on the farm. When the British made their (unfortunately) bloodless withdraw from Hong Kong, they absolutely refused to give these faithful Servants of the Empire visas. They were good enough to kill for the Empire and no more. It is surprising that some police could hold back a crowd that includes those mercenaries and their families.

June 2, 2001, 10:03 AM	#9
ctdonath Senior Member Join Date: April 11, 1999 Posts: 1,912	For some reason I'm reminded of an exchange in The Lion In Winter: "He's got a knife!" "Of course he's got a knife! We've all got knives. It's 1185 and we're barbarians." Maybe if the rest of the royal family had "knives" they'd be alive now...

June 2, 2001, 11:30 PM	#10
IZZY Senior Member Join Date: February 2, 2000 Location: Ol' Virginny Posts: 800	I don't know if it means anything, but a huge crowd converged on parlement accusing them of a political assasination. ( can we really rule it out?) they had to be dispersed with tear gas, rubber bullets ( real bullets as well?)

June 3, 2001, 08:15 AM	#12
dinosaur Senior Member Join Date: December 28, 1999 Location: NE Pa. Posts: 1,247	Did I hear Fox News right this a.m? The shootings were an "accident"? I know, he was cleaning it and it went off. Then he looked down the barrel like he`d seen Algore do to see if it was empty. What a senseless tragedy. This should make the MMM`s website for sure.

June 3, 2001, 09:16 AM	#13
Walosi Senior Member Join Date: June 1, 2001 Location: Auburn, KY Posts: 298	This could be a severe pivotal point for a small, very poor nation. They have a Prime Minister who has been embroiled in a scam airline leasing arrangement, an active "Maoist" element blowing up rural police stations and ambushing polce patrols and a congress that is so deadlocked that the several parties can't even agree on who they are for/against. An early report on Nepal News ("modified" in a later version) said that the Prince appeared to be inebriated at family dinner, and was asked to leave. He returned later in full battle dress, and began his shooting spree. When aides tried to subdue him, he shot himself through the head, and remains alive on life support, but is clinically "brain dead". On this technicality, he succeeds his father as king, and his uncle has been appointed regent to rule in his place. This is a tough little country, and the people who survive there are hardworking and have much to their credit.

June 3, 2001, 09:22 AM	#14
Mike in VA Senior Member Join Date: October 16, 1998 Location: Santa FE, NM Posts: 2,165	It seems the crown prince is still alive, though in serious condition, claiming it was an "accident" with an automatic weapon. Idjit. He's been declared King, but an uncle is standing in for him until he recovers. Life is strange there, must be the altitude. M2

June 3, 2001, 05:45 PM	#15
Navy joe Senior Member Join Date: January 28, 2001 Location: VA, USA Posts: 1,589	Looks like they appointed Nate Brazill as royal family spokesman. You know he just pointed the gun and it accidentally emptied the mag on the family. I don't think he's gonna live as more than an eggplant, if he does pull through better get Johnnie Cochran.

June 3, 2001, 09:39 PM	#16
Gary H Senior Member Join Date: April 26, 2000 Location: California Posts: 2,259	Is Diane Feinstein pushing gun control for Nepal?

June 3, 2001, 11:13 PM	#17
Libertarian Senior Member Join Date: October 26, 1999 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 2,123	He died tonight. I wonder if his parents are waiting to have a talk to him on the other side?

June 4, 2001, 06:36 AM	#18
Dead Senior Member Join Date: June 5, 2000 Location: AoW Land, USA Posts: 1,809	Here is a snip from the lastest newsreports (i use that term VERY loosely for some reason?). " Dipendra had been in a coma since Friday when he either mowed down his family in a hail of automatic rifle fire following a row over his choice of bride, or suffered fatal injuries when an AK-47 inexplicably "exploded" and wiped out his family. " Just like a grenade inexplicably explodes if one pulls the pin, and throws it. geee imagine that, it went off some how???? __________________ Dead [Black Ops] www.therallypoint.org

June 4, 2001, 09:02 AM	#19
Kharn Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2001 Location: Maryland Posts: 1,532	You never know, he could have had an underbarrel grenade launcher on his AK... Kharn

June 4, 2001, 10:41 AM	#20
dZ Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 1999 Location: the Fetid Swamp, DC Posts: 7,565	i am envisioning a really sick Saturday Night live Skit, kinda like Akroid's Julia child accidently severing major arteries sketch... A 30 round clip in a full auto AK "accidentally" connecting fatally with 8 people???? Thats quite the AD Daddy, can you help me with the selector on my assault rifle? it seems to be stuck...

June 4, 2001, 11:29 AM	#21
TheBluesMan Staff Join Date: June 15, 1999 Location: Ohio Posts: 7,566	Reports that I have read on cnn.com have said that they found 40 bullets just in the King's and one of his sons' bodies. Other reports say the prince had two automatic rifles and that he used a pistol to shoot himself. Another source says that it was a planned assasination/coup to take the royal family out of the picture once and for all and keep power in the newly formed government. We may never know what really happened. My questions are: Doesn't the king have armed bodyguards? What happened to them? Were they there and did they die too? Did they get off any shots at the prince?