Nepalese Gurkhas end hunger strike over UK military pensions

LONDON (AP) — A 13-day hunger strike by former Nepalese Gurkha soldiers has ended after the British government agreed to enter talks with the Nepalese Embassy over veterans’ pensions. The agreement came a day after a 60-year-old Gurkha veteran was admitted to the hospital with heart problems. Gurkha soldiers, have served the British Army for more than 200 years, most recently in Afghanistan. The hunger strikers were part of a group of protesters calling for equal pensions for Gurkhas who retired before 1997 and are not eligible for a full British armed forces pension. The Gurkha Equal Rights campaign group tweeted on Thursday that the hunger strike was called off after “13 days of fast unto death.”