Kathmandu  (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The Maoist rebels yesterday declared their unilateral ceasefire against King Gyanendra as over. A few hours later, bombs went off in three cities in Nepal.

One explosion damaged a government building in Bhairahawa city, about 280 kilometers southwest of the capital Katmandu, and another hit a city council office in nearby Butwal. Another two blasts targeted a police station in Pokhara. No casualties or reprisals were reported.

A few hours earlier, the Maoist rebels had announced that the unilateral truce they called on 3 September was over.

"The ceasefire has come to an end," said rebel leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

"We want to make it clear our actions will be targeted against the autocratic regime. We are compelled to go offensive not only for the sake of peace and democracy but for the sake of self-defence."

King Gyanendra, who took power 11 months ago, never adhered to the truce; he dismissed it as subterfuge by the Maoists so they would have time to reorganize themselves.

According to the rebels, the army attacked their positions even during the ceasefire. The rebels did not attack military or civilian targets, but they continued to block communication channels, to extort money and to kidnap people to indoctrinate them.

In November, the Maoist rebels formed a loose alliance with seven political parties in the country, to embark on a shared drive to obtain democracy through the election of a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution which would define the future role of the monarchy. Before King Gyanendra seized power, Nepal had been a constitutional monarchy governed by parliament since 1990.

All political parties deplored the end of the armistice. "The government provoked the rebels to break the peace. But we will continue to urge all parties to maintain peace," said Arjun Narsingh of the Nepali Congress, the largest party in Nepal.

Last week, Kofi Annan, secretary of the United Nations, and the European Union, called for an extension of the truce. India and the United States expressed "concern".

Since 1996, when the Maoists started their revolt to set up a communist republic, more than 12,000 people died.

The king has fixed local elections for February as a prelude to a political ballot. The rebel leader, Prachanda, has said he will impede them, while opposition parties are calling for a boycott and insisting on an immediate return to a multi-party democracy.