U.N.: Future peace threatened in Nepal

KATHMANDU, Nepal, May 6 (UPI) -- The head U.N. representative in Nepal is warning that future peace in the country may be threatened in the wake of recent political tensions.

Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, head of the Maoist Communist Party of Nepal, resigned Monday. On Sunday, Dahal -- also known as Prachanda -- fired the country's army chief, Gen. Rookmangud Katawal. Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav reinstated Katawal only a few hours later, and Dahal resigned in response.

The high-level tensions have raised international concern over the future of the peace process in Nepal. Karin Landgren, U.N. representative in Nepal, called on leaders in the country to work together to avoid destabilization, the United Nations reported.

"This is a volatile moment in Nepal's peace process," Landgren told the U.N. Security Council, according to the United Nations. "(There is a) serious deficit of trust among the principal political actors."

She added, "The parties should urgently take steps to rebuild trust and work together in the spirit of compromise and consensus needed to protect the achievements and ensure further progress in the coming weeks and months."