Myanmar’s ruling military junta used a new fleet of armed Chinese drones and UAVs to carry out attacks on resistance fighters; previously, only resistance fighters had used Chinese drones in attacks against the junta (Reuters)
Myanmar’s Shadow Government Says Currency, Dollar Reserves Have Dropped
A group mainly composed of lawmakers who fled after the country’s 2021 coup estimated that Myanmar’s currency has fallen almost 70 percent against the dollar since 2021, and foreign currency reserves have dropped to around $3.8 billion or less; the estimates are a more recent update on the country’s finances than the junta’s latest announcements (Bloomberg)
Ethnic Rebel Groups Have Expanded and Consolidated Control Along Much of Myanmar’s International Borders
The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar calculated that the junta lost total authority over 86 percent of the country’s territory, while the International Crisis Group said many ethnic armed groups were “well on the way to establishing autonomous statelets” (Reuters)
UN Flags Attacks on Rohingya in Myanmar Amid Conflict
Around forty-five thousand Rohingya people have fled Myanmar’s Rakhine State in recent days amid battles between Myanmar’s military and rebel forces, the UN human rights office said; it received reports of attacks on Rohingya civilians by both the military and rebels and urged an end to violence and the protection of civilians (UN)
ASEAN Delegation To Meet With Junta Chief
The bloc has kept open channels of communication with the junta, though it is divided over how much contact it should have with opposition rebels, the Diplomat reported
Myanmar Resumes Foreign Work Applications Amid Draft Chaos
Authorities resumed processing overseas work permits for military-age men yesterday, reneging on a halt since the start of the month that appeared to be in an effort to block men from fleeing conscription (Nikkei)
Armed Ethnic Group Seizes Military Base, Captures Soldiers
The Arakan Army announced the imprisonment of hundred of soldiers after capturing a major military outpost in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state; Myanmar’s military government did not comment on the attack and the group’s claims could not be independently verified (AP)
Myanmar Ends Permission for Military-Age Men to Travel Abroad for Work
Yesterday’s policy announcement comes weeks after a February military enlistment order led many people to try to flee the country; since taking over in a coup in 2021, Myanmar’s junta has been battling rebels in a civil war that has killed thousands of people and displaced at least 2.6 million, according to UN data (BBC)
Thai Authorities Send Refugees From Myanmar’s Conflict Back Over the Border
Thailand said it was safe to return home only three days after more than three thousand refugees fled a war-torn Myanmar town on the border; many of the refugees have been hesitant about going back over concerns about ongoing violence and the ruling military junta’s new enforcement of conscription (Nikkei)
Rebel Forces Make “Temporary Retreat” From Town of Myawaddy on Thai Border
A rebel spokesperson said the withdrawal was made after a counteroffensive from Myanmar’s military junta; ethnic armed groups took over the strategic town in an offensive earlier this month (Reuters)
Myanmar Insecurity Reportedly Hampers Indian Plans to Send Back Undocumented Migrants
Dozens of people who crossed into India that Indian authorities are seeking to deport back to Myanmar have been stuck in recent weeks due to fighting there, unnamed Indian security officials told Reuters; India’s government has blamed the refugee influx as a factor in the uptick in violence in its northeastern border state of Manipur since last year (Reuters)
Authorities Move Jailed Former Leader Aung San Suu Kyi to House Arrest to Avoid Heatstroke
Suu Kyi has been in prison since the military overthrew her government in a 2021 coup (Reuters)
Thailand’s Foreign Minister Visits Myanmar Border Over Clashes
Thailand seeks “peace and dialogue,” the country’s foreign minister said today on a visit to a Thai town across the border from the Myanmar city of Myawaddy that was recently overtaken by rebels; earlier this week, Thailand said it would accept one hundred thousand people from Myanmar, but has warned the conflict should not spill into Thai airspace (Al Jazeera)
UN: Nearly Half of Myanmar’s Population Lives Below Poverty Line
Myanmar’s civil war is driving an economic crisis that has plunged almost half the population below the national poverty line of $0.76 per day, the UN Development Program said in a new report released today; as recently as the mid-2010s, Myanmar was seen as one of Asia’s most promising emerging markets (WaPo)
Clashes Between Rebels, Army Increase in Eastern Myanmar
Aerial strikes, shelling, and bombardments pushed civilians to find temporary refuge in nearby safe zones, alarming neighboring Thailand about the possibility of a mass exodus of people from the city of Myawaddy (AP)
Myanmar Officials Begin Evacuating Eastern Town After Rebel Offensive
The rebel gains in the town of Myawaddy along Myanmar’s border with Thailand represent one of the army’s most significant setbacks since its February 2021 takeover of the country; more than six hundred military personnel have surrendered to the rebels in the area amid recent attacks on military bases (Nikkei)
Opposition Forces Claim Rare Mass Drone Attack on Nay Pyi Taw
The military government said that it shot down seven drones and there were no casualties in the capital city (BBC)
UNICEF: Civilian Deaths in Myanmar From Landmines Nearly Tripled in 2023
More than one thousand civilians died from landmines and other explosive ordnance last year amid the country’s civil war, the UN Children’s Fund said; a UNICEF official called for the end of landmine use in Myanmar and noted that the weapons are being used by all sides of the conflict (UNICEF)
Rise in Methamphetamine Trafficking in Ungoverned Regions of Myanmar
The United Nations estimated that opiates accounted for between 2 and 4 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 202 (Nikkei)
Myanmar Scales Back Annual Military Parade as Insurgency Strains Army Resources
This year’s annual military parade was smaller than usual as gear and personnel for Myanmar’s military are currently tied up in a tough battle against rebel forces; the military plans to start conscripting members of the general public in late April (Nikkei)
Thailand Sends Aid to Myanmar Through Humanitarian Corridor
Thai officials say the aid to conflict-stricken Myanmar will be monitored by an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) mechanism, though some critics contend that the aid would neglect people in areas uncontrolled by the government; UN agencies say 18.6 million people in the country require humanitarian assistance (AP)
UN Leader Voices Alarm at Reports of Military Strikes in Myanmar’s Rakhine State
Residents told AFP that the air strikes on villages in the western Myanmar state killed more than twenty people; UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was “alarmed” at the reports (AFP)
Violence has rattled the area since a rebel group ended an effective cease-fire with the government in November that had been in place since the military’s 2021 coup (RFA)
Yangon Bomb Attacks Target Companies Linked to Military Junta
The bombs were directed at the military-affiliated Myanmar Economic Corp, which is suspected of importing and supplying fuel for military equipment (Nikkei)
UN Human Rights Chief Urges Restricting Junta’s Access to Arms, Fuel, and Foreign Currencies
Volker Turk told the Human Rights Council the move could hinder the Myanmar military’s repression of civilians; neighboring Bangladesh said last month that it would not accept any more refugees from Myanmar (Reuters)
Bangladesh Resists Accepting More Rohingya Refugees Waiting Along Shared Border
A UN representative reportedly asked Bangladesh to accept some nine hundred people last week on humanitarian concerns, but the country says it already hosts more than one million Rohingya refugees and cannot accept more (Nikkei)