Everest brawl sparks cop investigation

The red mist can descend anywhere. Just ask members of the Ukrainian Parliament who seem content to kick seven shades out of each other, while in session, most weeks.

But this is the first time we've heard about a brawl kicking off near the summit of Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain.

Local police (who we'd imagine are badasses) are investigating reports of a fight on the upper reaches between two foreign climbers and their Nepalese guides.

"We were told our clients and the guides fought on their way to camp three. We don't have all the details yet, but our clients have come down off the peak," said Anish Gupta of Cho-Oyu Trekking, the Kathmandu-based company that organised the expedition.

He said that one of the clients, a Swiss national, had descended the mountain and was currently waiting for a flight back to Kathmandu.

The other client, an Italian, remained at Everest Base Camp and may still try to summit the 8,848-metre (29,029-foot) peak.

Sitaram Karki, the chief district officer in Solukhumbu, the region where Everest stands, told AFP: "There are communication issues high on the mountain, but we have received the reports of a fight and deployed our team to investigate the incident".