Nepal has banned solo climbers from scaling its mountains, including Mount Everest, in a bid to reduce accidents, an official said on Saturday. The cabinet late on Friday endorsed a revision to the Himalayan nation's mountaineering regulations, banning solo climbers from its mountains -- one of a string of measures being flagged ahead of the 2018 spring climbing season. "The changes have barred solo expeditions, which were allowed before," Maheshwor Neupane, secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, told AFP. Thousands of mountaineers flock to Nepal -- home to eight of the world's 14 peaks over 8,000 metres -- each spring and autumn when clear weather provides good climbing conditions. Almost 450 climbers -- 190 foreigners and 259 Nepalis -- reached the summit of Everest from the south side in Nepal last year.

Source: dna December 30, 2017 09:22 UTC