The army captured a Maoist headquarters in western Nepal, and insisted that the rebels did not control any areas of the country. The army has found that rebel control depends on the presence of armed rebel groups in an area to protect rebel sympathizers, and terrorize government officials and pro-government civilians. The army tactics of going after the rebel camps has succeeded in finding and destroying many of these camps, and disrupting Maoist operations in many parts of the country. Most of the population appears to support the government, and the army is passing out weapons to local security forces. Often, army veterans form the core of these local defense groups.