A two-day strike called by Maoists in Nepal drew to a close Saturday. Meanwhile, Nepal's army says it has killed at least 37 Maoist guerrillas in three separate incidents in the western part of the country following stepped-up attacks by the rebels over the past week.

Public buses and private cars began returning to the streets of Kathmandu late Saturday, following two days of inactivity in the capital. The two-day strike was called by Maoists to mark the sixth anniversary of the beginning of their armed uprising to overthrow Nepal's constitutional monarchy. There were no major incidents of violence reported in the capital.

Nepal's army says it has intensified operations in the western part of the county, killing rebels in three incidents on Friday in and around Acham district. The defense ministry says operations are continuing and many of the rebels killed were involved in attacks over the past week in the area that left about 170 police and army troops dead.

About 200 rebels, security force personnel and civilians have died in violence in western Nepal in the past week, bringing to more than 2,500 the number of people killed since the Maoists began their insurgency.

The Maoists who get their inspiration from China's late revolutionary leader Mao Tse-tung and Peru's Shining Path guerrillas are seeking to overthrow the world's only Hindu kingdom and replace it with a so-called people's republic.

On Thursday, Nepal's parliament voted to extend a state of emergency imposed last November by three months. Under the state of emergency Nepal's army was authorized to join the country's police force in fighting the rebels.

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