At least 13 dead in Nepal after protests against social media ban

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At least 13 people have been killed and dozens injured in Nepal after demonstrations against a government social media ban led to clashes between protesters and security forces.

Thousands heeded a call by demonstrators describing themselves as Generation Z to gather near the parliament building in Kathmandu over the decision to ban platforms including Facebook, X and YouTube.

Nepal's Minister for Communication Prithvi Subba said police had had to use force - which included water cannons, batons and firing rubber bullets.

The government has said social media platforms need to be regulated to tackle fake news, hate speech and online fraud.
But popular platforms such as Instagram have millions of users in Nepal, who rely on them for entertainment, news and business.