Nepal bomb kills at least 4

At least four people were killed in an explosion in a busy market area near a political rally in southeastern Nepal today.

Police said the blast — which happened in the holy city of Janakpur, 155 miles southeast of Kathmandu —also injured 18 people, reported CNN. One person was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the bombing and is being treated at a local hospital.

"Initial reports say that a bomb went off in a motorcycle near a sit-in program at a market square," chief district administrator Basanta Raj Gautam of Dhanusha district said to CNN from the blast site.

The seriously injured have been airlifted to Kathmandu.

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People had gathered during the busy rush hour for a political rally to demand a separate state in a new constitution, which is being drafted by Nepal's Constituent Assembly, according to Fox News. Witnesses said the bomb was hidden in a red motorcycle parked near the rally. A group calling itself Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (the Democratic Terai Liberation Front) claimed responsibility for the explosion.

Several groups have been demanding separate provinces based on ethnicity, reported CNN. Some political parties also want provinces based on economic viability.