Nepal Maoists threaten to end government support

Nepal's Maoist party on Saturday vowed to pull out of the government if the premier fails to appoint its lawmakers as cabinet ministers, threatening fresh political turmoil in the Himalayan nation. "We will withdraw our support to the government if the prime minister fails to administer the oath of office (to our members) by Sunday," said Maoist spokesman Dinanath Sharma. The withdrawal of Maoist backing would mean the collapse of Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal's administration. The Maoists want Khanal to appoint 19 of the party's members to the cabinet, swelling its membership to more than 40. Khanal, of the Unified Marxist Leninist party, was chosen as premier by lawmakers in February after winning the support of the Maoists, the once underground rebel force that emerged as the largest party in parliament after elections in 2008. Khanal's selection as prime minister followed a damaging seven-month-long leadership vacuum in the poverty-stricken nation. The Maoist declaration came after a meeting of the party's senior leaders following a month of bitter internal negotiations over the distribution of ministerial portfolios.