China Urges Groups to Stop Fighting in Bhamo, Kyaukphyu
Amid ongoing fighting by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Arakan Army (AA) against Myanmar’s military junta in Bhamo and Kyaukphyu, China is seeking to facilitate talks with the groups to ensure its investments in the country are secure; as an incentive, China is offering improved relations if the groups agree to halt their attacks (The Irrawaddy)
Junta, Armed Opposition Extend Temporary Truce
The country’s military junta has prolonged its post-earthquake ceasefire against rebel groups to June 30, while the country’s armed opposition groups said they, too, would continue their ceasefire through the end of the month; fighting in the country’s civil war had initially impeded aid efforts following the March 28 quake (Reuters)
ASEAN Endorses Creating Permanent Envoy to Myanmar
The current system involves a changing envoy each year; the rotating envoy is tasked with helping Myanmar resolve its current civil war, but that implies starting “all over again each time” a new envoy is selected, Malaysia’s foreign minister said (Reuters;Nikkei)
At Least Twenty-Two Killed After Military Airstrike on School
Local media and resistance stated that the attack killed at least twenty students and two teachers, wounding at least fifty others; the military junta’s state media accused other media sources of fabricating the attack in the central Sagaing region, which occurred despite the military’s pledge to uphold a ceasefire until May 31 (AP)
Myanmar Junta Extends Temporary Ceasefire to May 31
The junta announced the ceasefire following the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar in late March, and state media justified the extension as an opportunity to continue supporting the country’s reconstruction and recovery (Reuters)
However, evidence from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project shows the junta has actually increased its air strikes on rebel areas since it called for the ceasefire (Reuters)
U.S. Sanctions Leader of Karen National Army in Myanmar
The U.S. Treasury levied sanctions against the ethnic army’s leadership in connection with its facilitation of cyber scam operations and centers near the Thailand-Myanmar border; the Treasury also implicated the group in human trafficking and smuggling (Reuters)
Hundreds of people have been forced to take part in scam operations in Southeast Asia in recent years, the UN human rights office has said (UNHCR)
Myanmar Junta Carried Out Over 170 Attacks During Ceasefire
Despite announcing a ceasefire on attacks following the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28, the military junta continued launching strikes against opposition forces and civilians; around 70 of the 170 attacks targeted areas most affected by the earthquake, according to data from the United Nations and the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (Reuters)
Myanmar’s Post-Quake Truce
Myanmar’s junta said it will extend a humanitarian ceasefire following the recent earthquake to April 30; the truce had been due to end today (AFP)
Meanwhile, the Russian state-owned firm Rosatom reaffirmed its commitment to move forward with the construction of a small nuclear facility in the country and asserted that the company’s facilities follow “strict seismic resistance requirements” (Reuters)
Aftershocks and Resource Shortages Hamper Earthquake Recovery
Three weeks after the 7.7 magnitude earthquake, recovery efforts in Myanmar are hindered by ongoing aftershocks and a lack of resources; the disaster has resulted in 3,726 deaths, over 5,100 injuries, and left 129 people missing, with essential services still disrupted in the hardest-hit areas (AP)
Myanmar Frees Nearly 4,900 Prisoners
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the ruling military council, pardoned 4,893 prisoners, including at least 22 political detainees; other prisoners received reduced sentences, except those convicted on senior charges (AP)
Malaysia Holds Rare Talks With Junta Chief
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also ASEAN’s rotating chair, held talks with the junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and the shadow National Unity Government to extend a ceasefire to support more aid efforts (Reuters)
Junta Leader to Meet Malaysian Prime Minister This Week
Myanmar’s General Min Aung Hlaing will visit Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday to discuss a possible extension of the ongoing, yet tenuous post-earthquake cease-fire between Myanmar’s military and rebel groups; Anwar stated that the upcoming meeting will focus on supporting humanitarian relief efforts as the fighting continues despite the declaration of unilateral cease-fires by both sides (Reuters)
China Allocates Nearly $140 Million in Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar
China has promised to assist in providing urgent medical and food supplies, reconstruction efforts, and disaster loss assessments (Reuters)
USAID Response Team in Myanmar Receives Termination Notice
The three team members arrived in Myanmar and had been assisting in recovery efforts following the massive earthquake when they received notice of their termination in an all-staff meeting with remaining USAID staff; former USAID officials stated that the government fired those who would have coordinated the ongoing relief effort, but despite the criticism of the United States’ slow and relatively small response, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Myanmar’s military junta hindered U.S. operations (Reuters)
Myanmar Junta’s Warning Shots at Chinese Relief Convoy
The junta fired at a Chinese Red Cross convoy transporting earthquake relief supplies, a military government spokesperson said; he added that the aid group had not informed authorities of its presence and failed to stop their vehicles (Reuters)
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said the team was safe and called for “open and unobstructed” relief routes (Nikkei)
Separately, the junta declared a ceasefire until April 22; Myanmar’s state media said that the military will follow a ceasefire to show “compassion” to those affected by the country’s earthquake (AP)
More than three thousand people have been reported dead after the disaster (AP)
Three Brotherhood Alliance Announces Unilateral Ceasefire After Earthquake
The alliance—which consists of the Arakan Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army—declared that they would not initiate any offensive operations for a month and only engage in self-defense for a month to facilitate humanitarian aid and rescue efforts (Reuters)
Days Have Gone by Without U.S. Humanitarian Team on the Ground After Myanmar’s 7.7 Magnitude Earthquake
More than two thousand people have died since Friday’s quake in the war-torn country, state media reported, with the total expected to rise sharply (AP)
A U.S. State Department spokesperson said yesterday that a USAID team was being sent to Myanmar, but the delay is a departure from past responses (NYT)
China, India, Malaysia, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam all dispatched emergency teams and supplies in relief ahead of the United States (Reuters)
Death Toll From Earthquake in Myanmar Passes Two Thousand
The earthquake dealt heavy damage to Mandalay—Myanmar’s second-largest city—as rescue crews struggle to remove rubble and locate survivors; Myanmar’s neighbors and allies, such as China, Russia, and India, have sent humanitarian aid and rescue personnel (Reuters)
Junta Carries Out Air Strikes Amid Earthquake Relief
The junta carried out air strikes in the country following a Friday earthquake that killed at least 1,700 people; the junta did not respond to a Reuters question about the strikes, which prompted international calls for restraint (Reuters)
An opposition group linked to some anti-junta militias said on Sunday that those under its command would halt offensive fighting for two weeks in quake-affected areas, while the junta today declared a week of national mourning (Andalou Agency;Nikkei)
United States Will Provide $73 Million in New Aid for Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh via UN World Food Program
The United Nations warned earlier this month that it planned to halve monthly food rations in the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar without new funding; a U.S. State Department spokesperson called on international partners to “engage with sharing the burden” for providing life-saving international aid (AP)
Myanmar Military Junta Leader Plans to Attend BIMSTEC Regional Meeting in April
General Min Aung Hlaing’s planned visit to Thailand in April to meet with other Bay of Bengal states will mark his first visit to a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) since before the civil war broke out in 2021; ASEAN leadership has limited Myanmar’s participation in summits since (Diplomat)
Eleven Killed After Junta Forces Strike Medical Clinic in Central Myanmar
Medical staff and five children were among those killed in the attack in the Magway region (Radio Free Asia)
UN Highlights Extreme Risk to Myanmar Due to Humanitarian Aid Cuts
United Nations (UN) rapporteur Thomas Andrews stated that U.S. aid freezes to Myanmar are already impacting civilians, raising the risk of famine in Rakhine State and cutting off access to key healthcare resources (Reuters)
Andrews’ statement comes as the World Food Program stated that they will cut food assistance to Myanmar by April 1 due to a lack of funding, which will affect over a million people (AP)
Meanwhile, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) reported that thirteen civilians, including six monks and four children, died in a military airstrike in Nawnghkio in Shan State, Myanmar, and seventeen others were wounded (Radio Free Asia)
At Least Twenty-Seven Civilians Killed, Over Thirty Wounded in Military Airstrike in Myanmar
The Mandalay People’s Defence Force (MDY-PDF), which currently controls the Let Pan Hla village, claimed that Myanmar’s military forces intentionally targeted civilians near a busy market area of the village (AP)
India Repatriates Hundreds of Scam Workers From Myanmar as Thousands Remain in Limbo
India repatriated around 280 of its citizens from the Myanmar-Thai border on March 9, with another group of around 260 flown back on Tuesday; after Thai and Chinese authorities shut down scam centers in Myanmar, thousands still remain in crowded camps controlled by armed groups (DW)