Nepal raises national flag in palace

KATHMANDU-Nepali authorities raised the national flag at the palace of dethroned King Gyanendra on Thursday, hours after stone-throwing demonstrators clashed with police and tried to storm inside.More than 25 people were injured when police beat the crowd back with bamboo sticks but protesters continued to shout anti-king slogans."Gyanendra, thief, leave the palace!" they shouted.Earlier on Thursday, the royal flag was lowered from Nepal's palace as the Himalayan nation celebrated its first day as a republic following the abolition of its 239-year-old Hindu monarchy.A special assembly elected in April voted to abolish the monarch and gave Gyanendra a fortnight to vacate the sprawling pink palace in Kathmandu. His palace will be turned into a museum.That vote was a key condition of a 2006 peace deal with the Maoist former rebels who ended their decade-long civil war and joined mainstream politics."Vive la Republique," read a banner headline in the Kathmandu Post."A hope is born," said the Himalayan Times daily.

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