Nepal war crimes panel to probe only 'serious violations'

KATHMANDU (AFP) - A truth commission examining Nepal's civil war will only investigate "serious violations" of human rights and could recommend an amnesty for perpetrators, the government said on Friday.

According to an official ordinance issued by the president's office, the commission will only investigate allegations of abuses which were either "committed systematically or targeting an unarmed person or community".

The commission, whose framework was agreed as part of a wider cross-party deal earlier this week, is intended to help Nepal heal some of the wounds left by the 10-year civil war in which more than 16,000 people were killed and around a thousand went missing.

But rights activists said that its remit meant that many people guilty of war crimes would not even have to face the commission while also criticising the previsions for an amnesty "if deemed reasonable".