The Maoists have indicated that they will further stiffen the embargo they have imposed on the Valley to make the situation more chaotic and unstable. According to our Rukum correspondent, Narayan Shah, the attack in Jumla was carried out within a week after top Maoist leaders including Krishna Bahadur Mahara, Ram Bahadur Thapa (Badal) and Nanda Kishor Pun reached Rukum in order to commence a special new campaign. The just-concluded politburo meeting of the Maoist party has decided to begin a new wave of attacks from next month.
The Maoists have suddenly gone quiet on talks, and have stopped calls for a ceasefire with UN mediation. The Maoist politburo meeting decided to further intensify the strategic offensive phase, and if this was not enough, to start fresh recruiting campaigns across the country. Right now the assumption is that the Maoist leadership is currently engaged in preparing for another major attack. The embargo has been fairly easy to enforce without a big deployment because of the use of terror as a tactic. The blockade could be diversion for centralised military activity in Makwanpur and Sindhuli. It is speculated that the Maoists, who appear dormant in eastern Nepal, could be making plans to attack a district headquarter. They are also planning to increase their militia strength to 60,000, according to sources. This is probably why they aren't really interested in talks at the moment. They are telling their grassroot cadre: "A revolutionary regime can't be obtained through talks, a decisive war is necessary and that it is imminent." They are also waiting to gauge the mindset of the Indians, Europeans, Americans and the UN. The rebels are under extreme pressure to chose between whether to continue fighting or hold peace talks. Our sources say the Maoists have decided to announce their new program within a few days. That should break the mysterious and eerie silence from the Maoists. It is necessary to know where they stand. (Nepalnews.com Translation Service)