Myanmar junta says a third of townships not under full military control

By AFP
02 February 2023
Myanmar junta says a third of townships not under full military control
Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing puts forward wide-ranging clarifications to the meeting 1/2023 of the National Defence and Security Council of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar in Nay Pyi Taw on 31 January 2023. Photo: Global New Light Of Myanmar

Myanmar's military does not "fully control" more than a third of the country's townships, state media on Wednesday reported junta chief Min Aung Hlaing as saying, as authorities extended a state of emergency for six months.

Of the total 330 townships, 198 are "100 percent stable," said Min Aung Hlaing, while the remaining 132 require varying degrees of "security attention."

"Although there is no protest at this moment, violence is still there," he said according to state broadcaster MRTV.

"Terrorists are terrorising, disturbing, killing and destroying" and hampering plans to hold elections, he said.

Following its putsch the military has clashed with established ethnic rebel groups as well as dozens of "People's Defence Forces" that have sprung up to fight back against the coup.

Analysts say some anti-junta groups have surprised the military with their effectiveness.

AFP