NEPAL’S new prime minister announced a seven-member Cabinet yesterday, designating a communist as his deputy and foreign minister.

Nepal’s communist rebels today declared a three-month halt in attacks, lifting a key burden on the new government poised to take control after weeks of bloody protests forced King Gyanendra to reinstate Parliament.

Police in Nepal stormed the house of former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and took him into custody today after he failed to appear before an anti-corruption commission, in a crackdown by the royalist government that critics say is politically motivated.