September 19, 2026

Myanmar Watch

Myanmar activists to sue Norway’s Telenor for handing data to military | Privacy News– www.aljazeera.com

pgnewser October 7, 2025 0

Myanmar activists to sue Norway’s Telenor for handing data to military | Privacy News– www.aljazeera.com
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Claimants say government used data to track and target activists in the wake of 2021 coup.

A group of civil society organisations in Myanmar plans to take legal action against Norwegian telecoms firm Telenor, accusing it of passing customer data to the country’s military government for use in repression.

The activists sent Telenor a notice of intent to sue on Monday, according to a statement from the Netherlands-based nonprofit Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO), which is backing the case. The case states that the data shared by the telecoms giant was used by the military following its 2021 coup to trace and target civilians.

The claimants allege that Telenor, majority-owned by the Norwegian government, disclosed data from millions of customers to the military authorities, which, after toppling the country’s elected government, embarked on a campaign of violence and repression.

Could the Myanmar Junta Rapidly Collapse Like al-Assad? | Council ...

Myanmar Junta Announces Plans for a Late December Election

pgnewser August 28, 2025 0

The Myanmar Junta’s election commission has just announced plans to hold a “multiparty democratic general election” on Sunday, December 28, 2025. The commission was formed the previous month. It is seen as a sign that the junta is recognizing its inability to hold a land it took through force, denying the results of a fair and free election, though skepticism abounds as to whether the election will actually happen.

Myanmar to hold general elections on December 28: state media – TRT Global
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Myanmar’s election commission has announced that the general polls will be held in Myanmar on December 28, state media reported.

The “multi-party democratic general election” will be held on Sunday, December 28, later this year, MRTV reported on Monday, citing a notification by the Union Election Commission.

The last general elections in the Buddhist-majority Southeast Asian country were held in November 2020, won by the National League of Democracy (NLD), which was ousted in a military coup in February 2021.

The announcement of polls came after the military junta last month formed a commission to oversee general elections, effectively signalling the end of the state of emergency rule.

Junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing also appointed himself as acting president.

Laos, Myanmar deepen ties as they mark 70 years of diplomatic relations – thestar.com.my

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13 killed in Myanmar junta strike on rebel-occupied ruby mine – South China Morning Post

pgnewser August 4, 2025 0

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A Myanmar junta air strike on a rebel-occupied ruby mining hub killed 13 people on Saturday, according to a resident and a spokesperson for an armed opposition group.

Civil war has consumed Myanmar since the military seized power in a 2021 coup, sparking resistance from pro-democracy guerillas who found common cause with long-active ethnic armed groups.

Their scattered forces initially struggled to make headway, but a combined offensive starting in late 2023 seized swathes of territory, including the town of Mogok – the centre of the ruby trade.

Myanmar is rich in precious stones and rare earth elements coveted by all factions and sold, mostly to neighbouring China, to boost war chests.

A junta spokesperson could not be reached for comment.

Myanmar Junta Turns to Iran for Missiles and Drones – The Irrawaddy

pgnewser July 30, 2025 0

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Iran has found a new market for its arms since the 2021 coup in Myanmar.

A Boeing 747 cargo plane from Iran landed in Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon three times between January and April last year.

Operated by Iranian cargo airline Qeshm Fars Air, the flights departed Mashhad, Iran’s second city, and returned to Iran the following day, flight tracker data shows.

What did Qeshm Fars Air bring to Myanmar?

One of the flights delivered a consignment of 21 boxes thought to contain military drones and engines. The sight of Iranian cargo planes landing in Myanmar’s capital has also sparked speculation they are supplying the junta with more powerful weapons, including guided missiles.

Qeshm Fars Air is already under US sanctions for allegedly transporting weapons to Tehran-backed groups in the Syrian civil war on behalf of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. But Myanmar Air Force defectors and other informed sources told The Irrawaddy that Tehran is now also delivering weapons to Myanmar.

Myanmar junta fleet continues upriver movement through Htigyaing as resistance forces warn of clashes – Burma News International

pgnewser July 25, 2025 0

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A fleet of junta military vessels moving upstream along the Ayeyarwady River resumed its journey from Htigyaing Township on the morning of 23 July, according to the Htigyaing Revolution (TR) group.

The fleet, composed of cargo ships and river warships enroute to Bhamo, halted overnight in Htigyaing on 22 July before continuing its advance. As of 11:15 am on 23 July, the vessels were reportedly near Dingyi Kya village in Htigyaing Township.

“They’ve already left. The situation hasn’t changed much yet. They’re near Dingyi Kya village in Htigyaing Township. There hasn’t been any airstrike so far,” a TR official told reporters.

In anticipation of possible conflict, the Bhamo District People’s Defence Force Battalion 1 issued a public warning on 22 July, urging residents of riverside villages to evacuate immediately. The group also cautioned against traveling along the river, holding festivals, or attending public gatherings due to the risk of air and naval attacks as the fleet approaches.

Myanmar rebels claim to have shot down a fighter jet being used by military to attack ground targets– abcnews.go.com

pgnewser June 10, 2025 0

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BANGKOK — A military fighter jet crashed and burned Tuesday in an area that has seen intense fighting during Myanmar’s civil war, with a rebel group claiming to have shot it down while state-run media reported it suffered a mechanical failure.

The aircraft went down midday in the Sagaing region, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) west of Mandalay, Myanmar ‘s second largest city, according to state-run MRTV television.

It did not identify the type of jet or mention casualties, and said a search and recovery effort was underway in Pale township where it went down.

Local media reports identified the plane as the two-seater Chinese FTC-2000G, a fighter ground-attack jet, and broadcast images of a crashed plane with body parts nearby.

Sagaing region is a stronghold of armed resistance to the military, which seized power in February 2021 from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Opposition to the takeover began peacefully, but escalated into a civil war as the authorities resorted increasingly to lethal force to quell dissent.

Insurgency Intensifies in Southwest Myanmar • Stimson Center– www.stimson.org

pgnewser June 5, 2025 0

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Since launching its sweeping offensive in November 2023, the Arakan Army (AA) has positioned itself to seize its home state, Rakhine, from the Myanmar military. On the eastern fringe of the Bay of Bengal, Rakhine has made international headlines as the site of the 2017 Rohingya genocide and the host to major Indian and Chinese infrastructure projects. The impact of Rakhine’s fall for those issues has been well-explored elsewhere. Less examined is how AA allies in southwest Myanmar have mobilized to support their patron, the AA, and how the group could shape the wider conflict. Although the AA is an avowedly ethnonationalist rebel group primarily interested in self-determination for Rakhine, it has expressed solidarity with the broader anti-junta movement and built up an extensive network of allies within it.

The axis that has emerged as a result has enabled the AA to expand its influence close to India in Chin State, threaten the military’s industrial base in Magway and Bago regions, and endanger the junta’s grip on the rice bowl of Ayeyarwady Region. As of early 2025, the AA is now the premier benefactor of insurgent activity in the southwest, with at least 17 groups and likely far more that have fought alongside and in parallel to the AA in Rakhine, Chin, Bago, Magway, and Ayeyarwady. This has greatly threatened the junta, complicated the AA’s relationship with the National Unity Government (NUG), and further entrenched its place in Chin state. Through these alliances, the AA has the power to greatly impact the trajectory of Myanmar’s civil war.

 

Myanmar Junta Rejects Bangladeshi Call for Rohingya State – The Irrawaddy

pgnewser May 5, 2025 0

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Myanmar’s regime has rejected a proposal by Bangladesh’s largest Islamist political party, Jamaat-e-Islami, for the creation of an independent Rohingya state in Rakhine State.

Jamaat made the proposal during a meeting with a Communist Party of China (CPC) delegation in Dhaka on Sunday. China has not responded.

The Jamaat delegation’s leader Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher told reporters that around 1.2 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh were enduring “inhumane conditions” and humanitarian aid was not a solution.

Myanmar Military Declares Temporary Truce After Earthquake– www.nytimes.com

pgnewser April 4, 2025 0

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Myanmar’s military on Wednesday declared a 21-day cease-fire to support relief and reconstruction efforts in the wake of a devastating earthquake in the country, a day after it fired on a Chinese Red Cross convoy trying to deliver food and medicine to desperate survivors.

The attack on the Chinese convoy, which was widely condemned by rights activists, highlighted the dangers aid groups face from the country’s ongoing civil war.

It remains unclear whether the cease-fire would be honored — armed rebel groups said the military had launched scores of airstrikes since Friday’s 7.7-magnitude temblor, which killed at least 2,700.

In the wake of the earthquake, the shadow government in exile, known as the National Unity Government, and an alliance of three rebel groups announced cease-fires. But the military, which seized power in a coup four years ago, had indicated that it would not stop hostilities. The fierce civil war had already caused widespread suffering before the earthquake, which left millions of people with little food and water.

PBS Cries Over USAID Absence After Quake: China Filling the ‘Vacuum’!– www.newsbusters.org

pgnewser April 4, 2025 0

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The PBS News Hour on Monday ran two stories grounded in liberal alarmism against the Trump administration’s quest to cut wasteful spending and fraud in the federal government, including at USAID — the United States Agency for International Development that provides foreign aid and economic development worldwide.

The point was reemphasized in the introduction from guest host William Brangham: “On the News Hour tonight, days after a deadly earthquake hit Myanmar and neighboring countries, USAID is largely absent, leaving a vacuum that China is quickly filling.”

Which begs the question — just how much international respect has the United States been getting for its “soft power” via its enormous worldwide work through USAID and related programs? It seems many around the world are primed to hate the United States no matter what it does or doesn’t do.

Reporter Nick Schifrin emphasized that “International aid organizations such as the U.N.’s Children’s Fund and World Food Program are working to deliver relief” and that “One of the most visible rescue teams has been Chinese. This morning, Chinese rescuers pulled a child out of the rubble, the team’s successes broadcast on Chinese TV.”

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Myanmar Hit by 7.7 Magnitude Earthquake

pgnewser April 3, 2025 0

In the midst of a civil war, the country of Myanmar must also deal with a catastrophic natural disaster, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake. The death toll went past 3,000. This figure is expected to rise as more rescuers reach remote regions that have been devastated by the earthquake. The earthquake struck March 29, 2025, hitting near Myanmar’s second largest city, Mandalay.

Myanmar earthquake death toll exceeds 2,700, but survivors still being found – National– globalnews.ca
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Rescue workers saved a 63-year-old woman from the rubble of a building in Myanmar’s capital on Tuesday, but hope was fading of finding many more survivors of the violent earthquake that killed more than 2,700 people, compounding a humanitarian crisis caused by a civil war.

The fire department in Naypyitaw said the woman was successfully pulled from the rubble 91 hours after being buried when the building collapsed in the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that hit midday Friday. Experts say the likelihood of finding survivors drops dramatically after 72 hours.

The head of Myanmar’s military government, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, told a forum for relief donations in Naypyitaw that 2,719 people have now been found dead, with 4,521 others injured and 441 missing, Myanmar’s state MRTV television reported.

NIGHTMARE FUEL: CCTV Footage Captures Moment 7.7 Magnitude Quake Rocks Skyscraper Rooftop Pool– wltreport.com

pgnewser April 3, 2025 0

NIGHTMARE FUEL: CCTV Footage Captures Moment 7.7 Magnitude Quake Rocks Skyscraper Rooftop Pool– wltreport.com
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Earthquakes are scary to begin with — from ground level.

But try imagining that you’re dozens of stories up on the top of a skyscraper, in a rooftop pool, when a massive quake strikes.

Talk about nightmare fuel!

That was the scenario that unfolded for multiple pool goers atop skyscrapers in the Thai capital of Bangkok last Friday.

The 7.7 Magnitude quake hit neighboring Myanmar, but Bangkok’s high-rise capital city also took an enormous hit.

Buildings are still coming down today nearly 6 days later as a result of the devastating initial quake, and the aftershocks.

From what I can tell, multiple skyscrapers with rooftop pools were captured from different angles during the shaking.

Myanmar Quake Death Toll Could Reach 10,000, CBN Mobilizes Relief Effort– www.cbn.com

pgnewser April 1, 2025 0

Myanmar Quake Death Toll Could Reach 10,000, CBN Mobilizes Relief Effort– www.cbn.com
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Rescue crews in Myanmar used jackhammers and shovels to find any survivors amid the devastation from Friday’s powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake.

Many citizens resorted to digging through the debris by hand, trying to locate anyone still trapped.

At one site, an official said they had detected possible signs of life under the rubble.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by buckled roads, downed bridges, and strong aftershocks, including a 5.1 magnitude aftershock Sunday afternoon.

The UN is warning of a shortage of medical supplies, especially since the quake hit in the middle of Myanmar’s ongoing civil war. There are long lines of victims in need.

The staff of CBN Myanmar is mobilizing to help victims, and a global relief team is deploying with clean water filters and solar lamps.

Myanmar-Thailand earthquake live updates: Myanmar faces worst devastation in Asia in 100 years – ABC News

pgnewser March 31, 2025 0

Myanmar-Thailand earthquake live updates: Myanmar faces worst devastation in Asia in 100 years – ABC News
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A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake rattled much of Southeast Asia on Friday, resulting in mounting casualties and flattened skyscrapers from Myanmar to Thailand.

The epicenter was in Mandalay, Myanmar, the country’s second-largest city. Even Bangkok, some 600 miles away, felt widespread shaking and saw significant damage from the quake — including the total collapse of a skyscraper under construction.

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