Thousands gather to welcome former Nepal king

Former King of Nepal Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev is welcomed by the pro-monarchy supporters demanding the restoration of monarchy, which was abolished in 2008, outside the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal March 9, 2025. - Reuters

KATHMANDU: Nepal's former king Gyanendra Shah was welcomed back to Kathmandu on Sunday (March 9) by thousands of supporters who have been staging pro-monarchy demonstrations in the Himalayan republic.

The Hindu-majority nation became a secular republic in 2008 after parliament abolished the monarchy as part of a peace deal that ended a decade-long civil war in which more than 16,000 people were killed.