KATHMANDU - NEPAL'S Maoists said on Sunday they would launch protests aimed at destabilising the government in a dispute over the military that led to the Maoists' fall from power in May.

The former rebels, who fought a decade-long civil war with the state before winning elections last year, stepped down after the president overruled their attempt to sack the army chief.

'From Monday we will launch our nationwide protest by surrounding government offices all over the country with thousands of our supporters,' Dev Gurung, a senior Maoist leader, told AFP.

The Maoists also vowed to bring Kathmandu to a standstill on November 10 by shutting the country's only international airport and blocking all highways.

Maoist leader Prachanda formed a government after winning the highest number of seats in parliamentary elections held in 2008 - two years after the end of the decade-long civil war between the former rebels and the army.

But the administration fell after just eight months when the president blocked their sacking of the head of the army. The Maoists have since been paralysing parliament, demanding the president apologise. -- AFP