As we flew into Kathmandu, you could already see from the sky, the fury playing out on the streets below.

Huge plumes of smoke rose over the Nepalese capital. It was the second day of intense protests, and it soon felt like something seismic.

On the ground, it was kinetic and chaotic. We landed just before the army closed the airport. The protesters were minutes away.

On the road, a constant stream of young people sped by on motorbikes, honking their horns as they raced towards parliament.

Some were carrying batons, others guns, some simply using their voices, declaring a “revolution”.

We watched as they set fire to a police station. Many, already angry, were incensed by the deaths of 19 people on Monday – accusing the police of using live ammunition to silence dissent.

The government has so far only acknowledged using rubber bullets and tear gas.

The leadership did lift the restrictions on social media – allowing people to use apps like X, YouTube and Instagram once again.

And soon after, Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned. But that wasn’t enough to satisfy the thousands defying the curfew.

Nearly everyone we spoke to shared the same message – this was not about any platform – it was about something far deeper and far more entrenched.

“This protest is not against the social media ban,” one man said as he raced through on a bike.

“This is against the big corruption that these ministers have done for the past few decades.

“We were suppressed. Now we have a voice.”

Throughout the day, you could feel people getting more emboldened. It was less than 24 hours before that we’d seen police firing at protesters – some victims died in their school uniforms.

But on Tuesday, we didn’t see a single officer. The only army we clocked was at the airport. And their absence was no more glaring than at the very centre of politics.

Parliament House, home to lawmakers, was engulfed in flames as we approached. Protesters were rejoicing outside – thousands cheering as the building burned.

It was surreal. The building looked abandoned – overrun by those who want radical change.

“They have given an open challenge to Gen Z,” one man told me, punching his wooden stick into the air as he spoke. “You should not challenge the youth or challenge Gen Z.”

I asked a young woman, Sandeep Bista, 26, if she was worried about more violence, given that 19 people had already died.

“I think to gain something you have to lose something,” she said. “So they’re patriots for us. But today I’m happy. Revolution is coming.”

As the light faded, the mood shifted, people edging closer until they finally stormed inside – large groups clutching phones – seemingly undeterred by the sound of small explosions.

There was smashed glass everywhere, dust obscuring the winding stairs. People climbed up them to try and grab or destroy what little was left – relics to remember the day by.

Some came back with gleeful faces, holding bits of gold furniture and decoration – a symbol of the elite they’ve come to loathe.

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Elsewhere in the city, politicians were attacked, their homes targeted. The young people here feel on the cusp of victory and the right side of history.

When you ask them what justice looks like, they say they want equality – a leadership that addresses their needs.

Quite what that equality looks like seems harder for them to specify. But a wholesale change in leadership appears to be a crucial demand.

The big question is, what next?

We don’t yet know who might take over from the prime minister. The police clearly chose to stay away on Tuesday – no doubt fearful of the reception they’d receive.

But by evening, the Nepali army vowed to “take control of the situation”. From what we saw, calm currently feels pretty elusive.

Hundreds of inmates have escaped prisons, politicians’ home addresses are being shared online, and many young people who feel they have waited far too long already want dramatic change and quickly.

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It is a powder keg moment that could change the course of the country for many years to come.

Like the recent demonstration in Indonesia and the uprising in Bangladesh just a year ago, this moment in Nepal has shown the fierce political power of young people.

Nepal’s prime minister KP Sharma Oli has resigned after violent anti-corruption protests.

“The PM has quit,” his aide Prakash Silwal told Reuters news agency on Tuesday.

In his resignation letter, sent to Nepal’s President Ram Chandra Paudel, Mr Oli said he is leaving with immediate effect “in order to take further steps towards a political solution and resolution of the problems […] taking into account the extraordinary situation currently prevailing in the country.”

The president has now begun the process to install a new PM, his aide said.

Mr Oli’s exit comes as demonstrators defied an indefinite curfew, clashed with police and set politicians’ homes on fire, a day after 19 people died in violent protests triggered by a social media ban.

His government lifted the ban after protests turned violent when police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters trying to storm parliament on Monday.

The unrest is the worst Nepal has seen in decades. The Himalayan country has struggled with economic uncertainty and political instability since protests led to its monarchy being abolished in 2008.

Prior to resigning, Mr Oli had on Tuesday called a cross-party meeting where he said violence was not in Nepal’s interests and added: “We have to resort to peaceful dialogue to find solutions to any problem.”

But anger against the government continued with protesters gathering outside parliament and other significant locations in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu.

Kathmandu Airport, Nepal’s international gateway, closed at around 3.15pm local time (10.30am UK time) on Tuesday due to the unrest.

In the city centre, some demonstrators set fire to tyres, threw stones at riot police and chased officers through the streets.

The Kathmandu homes of some politicians were also set on fire. These include properties belonging to resident Poudel and Sher Bahadur Deuba, leader of the largest party Nepali Congress.

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Local media reported that some ministers were taken to safety by military helicopters.

The demonstrations began in response to social media networks, including Facebook, X and YouTube, being blocked in Nepal last week after they failed to comply with new government regulations.

But the unrest has spiralled, driven by young people’s frustration with the Nepali government’s perceived lack of action to tackle corruption and boost economic opportunities.

Donald Trump has distanced the US from Israel’s “unfortunate” strike in Qatar, which drew international condemnation and killed five members of Hamas.

The Israeli Defence Forces said it carried out Tuesday’s strike in Doha “targeting the senior leadership of the Hamas terrorist organisation”.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said “Israel initiated it, Israel conducted it, and Israel takes full responsibility” for the attack – which the US president echoed on Truth Social.

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Mr Trump said the US military notified his administration about the Israeli attack on the Qatari capital, and added: “It was not a decision made by me.

“Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a Sovereign Nation and close Ally of the United States, that is working very hard and bravely taking risks with us to broker Peace, does not advance Israel or America’s goals.”

Mr Trump then said however that eliminating Hamas “is a worthy goal,” and that he believes “this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for PEACE”.

Speaking to reporters a little later, he said he was “not thrilled” about the strike and would make a “full statement” on Wednesday.

Qatar’s UN ambassador says strike ‘cowardly’

Mr Netanyahu said the operation was a “surgical, precision strike,” and claimed it was “completely justified” after six people were killed in Jerusalem – which Hamas took responsibility for.

Meanwhile, Qatar’s interior ministry said that a member of its security forces were killed in Israel’s strike, and its UN ambassador called the attack a “criminal assault” and “cowardly” act.

Alya Ahmed Saif Al-Thani told the United Nations Security Council that Qatar “not tolerate this reckless Israeli behavior and the ongoing disruption of regional security,” adding the strike “constitutes a blatant violation of all international laws and norms”.

In a phone call with Mr Trump, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani also said Qatar will take all necessary measures to protect its security and preserve its sovereignty.

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Starmer condemns strike ahead of Herzog visit

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also condemned Israel’s strike, saying it violates Qatar’s sovereignty and risks further escalation in the region.

His comments came ahead of Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Britain, where he will meet with the prime minister this afternoon.

Sir Keir said in a statement he intends to raise the issue of the “intolerable situation” in Gaza with Mr Herzog, adding: “We’ve been clear Israel must take action to end [the] horrific scenes.”

In a phone call with the Emir of Qatar, Sir Keir also “gave his condolences for the death of a Qatari security officer killed in the attack”, according to a Downing Street readout.

Protests against Mr Herzog’s visit are widely expected throughout his visit. Demonstrators gathered outside Downing Street yesterday to protest his arrival, while Green Party leader Zack Polanski told Sky News that the official should be arrested.

Mr Polanski, who is Jewish, said: “Welcoming a potential war criminal to the UK is another demonstration of how this Labour government is implicated in the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

“It also serves as a brutal insult to those mourning the thousands of innocent lives lost and to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing ongoing violence and hunger.”

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Israel has strongly denied that its actions in Gaza amount to genocide, but is being challenged on the issue in a case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

The world’s leading association of genocide scholars, as well as several Israeli human rights organisations, have already accused the country of genocide.