Five explosions around the Nepalese capital today killed at least 12 policemen and injuring eight others.
The attacks came just hours after security forces said they had killed 16 Maoist rebels in a firefight.
The bombings were the first attacks in the area around the capital since Maoist rebels ended their truce earlier this month. Security was beefed up in Kathmandu following the strikes.
Eleven policemen including an inspector died in one of the bomb attacks, at Thankot, just outside the capital.
One policeman died and eight were injured in the second blast near the temple town of Bhaktapur.
The casualties, if any, were not known in the other three blasts - one at a municipal office in Patan and two others at Thimi and Thali, all near Kathmandu.
Maoist rebels, who have been fighting to topple the Hindu monarchy and set up a communist state in the Himalayan nation, ended their four-month truce on January 2 nd, claiming the government had not matched it.
At least 12,500 people have died in the conflict since 1996.