Nepal: 'Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the International Commission of Jurists today welcomed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the government of Nepal and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights providing for deployment of an international human rights presence to Nepal. The agreement calls for U.N. offices to be established in Kathmandu and, importantly, in regional centres, to help establish accountability for rights abuses and prevent further violations by both government forces and Maoist rebels, who have been locked in a civil war since 1996.' (Human Rights Watch)